Cardinal King 3 - Bright Future
by Kyralih
Summary: There's no rest for the weary. After saving the world twice in one week, Mamoru and his Heavenly Kings, alongside Princess Sailor Moon and her Guardian Senshi, find themselves in the Space-Time Dimension and are set with a difficult task: Help save Rin's future. Part Three of the Cardinal King Series
1. The Doom and Bloom Girls

**A/N: **Hi again (￣▽￣*)ゞ

My inbox had been filling up with random kudos and follows and even a smattering of reviews from arcs one and two and I had this chapter 1/3 of the way written, so in the free time before this semester began, I started to work on this again! At the moment I have chapters 1-4 completed, but for fear of time repeating itself, I'm going to release one chapter a week so I hopefully don't go dark for months if my job and my graduate school stuff eats me alive again xD ((and if I finish everything I'll release them faster, hahaha...))

If you are unfamiliar with Cardinal King (a reversed AU centering on Mamoru as Cardinal King and the shitennou as his Heavenly Kings who protect the world against the Evil Queen and her Senshi Warriors), please use the Cardinal King Collection above to redirect yourself to the first arc (entitled simply "Cardinal King")! Also found in the collection is "Cardinal King One-Shots", a collection of stories set behind-the-scenes of the original work, filling people in about stuff going on in the background that Mamoru (our narrator) wasn't privy to at the time - and then there's the second story, "Cardinal King: Arc Two - Architects of a New World". This story starts seconds after arc two ends, so please give that a glance if you're confused about anything in the first chapter!

And now for some refreshers XD (I realize I didn't pick the easiest to keep track of names...)

-Present Name (Last First) - Past Life Name - Superhero Title (accent color(s)) - Guardian-

Chiba Mamoru - Prince Endymion - King of the Cardinal Rose (gold) - Taishakuten, Lord of the Center

Hanada Kaito - Zoisite - King of the North (green/black) - Tamonten, Lord who Hears All

Moegi Yuu - Jadeite - King of the South (red) - Zochoten, Lord who Expands

Midori Nero - Nephrite - King of the East (orange/green) - Jikokuten, Lord who Upholds the Realm

Kobai Khalid - Kunzite - King of the West (blue/white) - Koumokuten, Lord who Sees All

The "new" Heavenly Kings uniform (all identical but for accent colors for the piping!) is a black version of their Shitennou uniforms from season one of Sailor Moon. All of them wear the jacket buttoned up and pants tucked into their boots; around the buttons there's some fancy thread embroidery and the top button is their transformation pendant! For the double colors above, the main gem is the first color with veins of the second veined through (representing their original colors veined with their new power base color). Mamoru's is black with a golden lotus blossom insignia in the center with mini colored gems at the cardinal points to represent his team! Additionally, in this form they always have a black-backed half-cape coming off their left shoulders, rather than having a full cape only appear when they're falling. -this form was totally inspired by a fanart pic of jadeite from pgsm, shh-

The Senshi are all in their base forms, except Usagi is Princess Sailor Moon!

*Anyway*, here's the first chapter!

* * *

Energy whirled around them, pulling at all angles, ripping at his clothing and trying to pry him apart from everyone else, but he wasn't going to let that happen. He held tightly to Rin with one arm and Usagi with the other and prayed that the pressure points on his back where at least two of his friends clutched at the material of his new uniform would continue. The cacophony that buffeted his ears was nearly too loud to hear _anything_, but the spontaneous shrieks of the shapeshifters made his blood run cold. He was powerless as he was, only able to protect the two people in his arms, unable to even see what was coming in the crackling rush that surrounded them; all he could do was count the seconds and be prepared to act the moment this whirlwind released them.

One of the grips on the back of his shirt pushed him forward before releasing, and moments later he crashed into the ground, the hand behind Rin's head cushioning the kid's fall as much as he could, their trajectory such that Usagi landed on top of them, and someone else or two besides. He opened his eyes and started trying to disentangle himself to prepare to fight off the enemies that followed them, but it was no use - he was near the bottom of the dogpile, Usagi's hair complicating matters as white-gloved Senshi tried to get up while trying not to pull at the golden strands. He pulled Rin closer to protect him from well-meaning jostling and could not have been more relieved to hear East and North.

"Help them, I'll keep an ear out," North stated cautiously, his voice coming from behind them, closer to the direction they had come from.

"Got it," East said casually as he approached, then sounded from directly above as he politely offered, "Jupiter, may I?"

With her consent, followed quickly by a squeak of surprise, Jupiter was lifted directly off of them and Mamoru could look up and see more than thick brunette locks. Nero had taken a careful hold of the tallest senshi's bicep in one hand and had lifted her with his other hand beneath her stomach, almost directly upward, keeping green-booted toes grounded until she was upright and stable and looking a little bewildered at having been manhandled so easily, and then, beyond that, her expression seemed shadowed by something else, but it was gone before he could identify it. Together the pair of them helped Venus to her feet, the blonde careful not to put any more pressure on Usagi than necessary, and then finally Usagi was able to sit up and tried to sweep her mess of long hair away, one of her odangos having unraveled somewhere in the journey. Venus gently helped her stand and started pulling her hair back with practiced ease, and while the senshi's eyes were soft when looking at her princess, they were otherwise sharp and wary of their surroundings. Without words, Jupiter went off to take up a monitoring position and Nero offered him his hand to pull him to his feet before blue eyes squinted, staring off into the gloom in the direction opposite Jupiter. Once standing he quickly helped Rin too his feet, keeping the kid close as he looked around, with East close on his right. The Doom and Gloom girls couldn't be far.

The world around them was stark and barren, the fog that hugged thick and close to the ground the only thing in any direction, illuminated by half-light that seemed to have no direct source. Above them the sky - if there was one - seemed to just fade out of sight, all green and grey and disconcerting.

"Some future," East commented under his breath.

"This isn't the future," Rin replied defensively as he opened his palm to reveal the item he had been holding before: a small golden key. "It's the dimension of the Space-Time Door," he elaborated, holding the key aloft as a little pink light glowed from its tip; Rin moved it carefully and the light shone dimmer in one direction, brighter in another, then dimmer again. It must've been honed in on where he needed to go. The kid held it in the direction it shone brightest and confirmed Mamoru's suspicions: "The door's this way."

He nodded down to acknowledge him and looked back towards North. "The others?"

"They dropped off when a couple of the shapeshifters got too close," North stated.

"Mercury and Mars, too," Venus confirmed, "They'll be able to find us again;" she stated with certainty, immediately moving on to ask Rin "how safe is this Time Door?"

"It's safe," Rin replied, "Its Guardian is on duty, and no one is more powerful here than Sailor Pluto."

"Sailor Pluto?" Venus repeated, sharing a pointed look with Jupiter.

"Do you know her?" Usagi asked, putting the final pin in her hair. Mamoru felt foolish for it, but he couldn't help but notice she was still in the guise of Serenity; while the long gauzy dress suited her (and he had some fond memories with her in that dress), he was more used to seeing her in her school uniform or the short-skirted outfits she liked to wear - or, most recently, in her Princess Sailor Moon disguise - so the dress from memories that felt more like dreams, nostalgic and sweet, was like bringing a soft light into the gloom surrounding them. As she was, however, with nothing but a few layers of silky fabric between her and everything else, he felt he needed to be nearer to her, to guard her, but with Venus there she was well protected. Usagi caught him staring and winked at him; his cheeks flushed and he averted his gaze.

Venus didn't answer Usagi's question at first, but took her slight hand and brought her closer to him - well, to _Rin_ in any case. "Let's keep moving," the leader of her guard decided, "they'll deal with the threat and catch up. Unless you need to provide your men with backup?"

She didn't _necessarily_ state it as a slight against them, but she didn't _not_ state it that way. Nero opened his mouth and took in a breath to answer but Mamoru put up his hand to stop him before he could let his emotions get away from him; the last thing they needed was another standoff, but he couldn't let her make a decision like that without knowing the details. After seeing West and East fight off the ghoulish figures after their power upgrade, he wanted to believe that the West and South could handle themselves against a shapeshifter, but he did not know how well Mercury and Mars would fare. "They may _all_ need backup," he stated, meeting in the middle rather than making it a contest of teams as he invited her sharp gaze, "The shapeshifters are strong and fast and powerful; each time we faced them we outnumbered them and still barely made it out in one piece. Let's head back, regroup, and go for the door together."

She met his gaze coldly, "Just because your generals were unable to handle the problem doesn't mean my senshi can't. We're going to the door; if you feel you need to support your people then meet us there."

"Right," East cut in, crossing his arms, "Makes complete sense. _We_ had problems with them so why would you? It's not like we've tested strengths before at some recent point in time and proved -"

"East!" North snapped, storming over to interrupt where that conversation was heading before Mamoru had the chance. He understood what set Nero off, but digging up that part of the past was no way to cement a working relationship, and - even if they didn't want to, which was not his intention at all - right now they had no other choice but to try to foster one. "I'm sure Venus only wants what's safest for her Princess and doesn't mean to insinuate anything untoward. _However_, she is operating with out-of-date information, and, before she commits herself to a difficult decision, I believe Usagi-chan has something to share?"

All eyes shifted to Usagi, who looked back at Kaito, completely unaware of what he meant. Mamoru smiled.

"Your transformation?" Kaito prompted quietly.

"Oh!" she lit up, twisting to face Venus head-on and take both of her hands and shake them excitedly, "I can transform! I'm a Senshi, now, too! Here, watch!" She took two steps backward, held her hand out to the side, swept it gracefully up over her head, and called out "Moon Princess Power, Make Up!" In a flash of cool light, Princess Serenity stood before them no more, in her place standing Princess Sailor Moon, her uniform similar in style to Venus's but for color and the addition of lace and pearl-string accents. She posed proudly before swooping in to grab Venus's hands again and jump enthusiastically. "Isn't it great?! Now I can fight with you guys!"

"And _kick ass,"_ Nero supported, reaching out to offer Usagi a high five, which she happily supplied. "West said you sent that shapeshifter packing before; with all of us together we'll zap 'em back to whatever hole they crawled out of!"

"So you see, Venus," North explained, but Venus's was obviously not paying him her attention. She had offered Usagi the faintest of smiles at being shown her transformation, but now she had only one target for her attention, and that was him: Chiba Mamoru. The gaze she pinned him with was a cold glare of accusation, quietly seething, her mouth a thin line that spoke volumes of her disdain. "You don't need to focus your entire attention on protecting Usagi-chan;" North continued, "she can, and has, fended for herself. We can go back for Mercury and Mars to ensure that we - _all of us_ \- get out of here and back to our own -" North froze, green eyes darting back towards the way they had come just as a spear materialized in his hand, his body language the only warning that Cardinal and East needed.

"Venus!" Jupiter shouted in warning, even as East dashed forward to meet the attack, his long brown hair and orange-backed black cape streaming behind him, stone-covered knuckles brought to bear against the winged changelings that barreled towards them.

"Trident!" North reminded sharply, running to take the second creature with his spear held out to his side, but East countered -

"Ramp!"

North stopped, aimed quickly, and a burst of ice shot from the tip of his spear and landed between East and the approaching creature; East jumped, landed on the tip of the ice and springboarded higher, sailing towards the green changeling and crashing down on top of her, stone knuckles brought to bear in a punching motion. There was a cracking sound at impact, and the "Doom and Gloom girl" plummeted to the ground ahead of Nero, hitting the stony surface so hard that ejecta shot out around her; East landed a split second later in the crater with another loud _crack_ -

"_Venus Crescent Beam!"_

Light exploded in the gloom and the laser-like mass of ionized energy shot out from Venus's outstretched finger, aiming true for the body of the pink shapeshifter; it struck her, but the short-haired creature only twitched in her course, grinning widely as it called teasingly, "_**Heading home so soon, Little Red?**_"

Venus fired again as Jupiter ran to intercept its course, skidding to a stop between the creature and them and crossing her arms, "_Jupiter Thunderbolt!"_ she called, and lightning seemed to strike her before it snaking out towards the flying monster, hitting it dead on, the energy pumping into the creature and crackling around it; it seemed paralyzed, its wings frozen and its body started to fall - but then they started beating again, and - with another sick grin that showed its muzzle and sharp, pointed teeth - it continued streaking towards them.

Sailor Moon's elbow brushed against his sleeve; their eyes met, and without words, he bent, scooped up Rin, and dashed in a tangential direction as Usagi's fingers hit the red gem in the center of the pearl tiara stretching across her forehead. "_Twilight Flash!"_ she called, and bright cold light reflected out into the eyes of the approaching creature. As he ran, Rin's arms around his neck, he freed his right hand and summoned a rose, preparing to defend in case either of the creatures got too close. To _anyone. _

East sprung out from the shallow crater only for North to jump in, spear first, and immediately pop back out again. "Frozen!" he called, tearing after East as they redirected efforts to the remaining monster.

"They're stronger," Rin marveled quietly, his body twisted around to see.

Princess Sailor Moon had fanned out in the opposite direction, across from them, as she skidded to a stop - the lace in her skirt jerking and bobbing into place - he saw the crescent wand in her hand and he steadied Rin and dashed just a little farther out of the path the energy would take. "_Moon... Princess…"_ she called, the silver crystal nestled in the crook of the wand starting to glow brightly in the gloom.

"Drop!" he shouted in warning, and North threw himself forward to tackle East to the ground.

"_Supreme Thunder!"_ Jupiter quickly called again, momentarily paralyzing the creature again to keep it in place.

"_Halation!"_ Blinding light, sparkling with energy, erupted from the end of the crescent moon wand, spreading ahead of her in a conal shape up and towards the recovering creature. It screamed as it was held in place by the immense energy of the silver crystal, but grew suddenly silent as its body disintegrated, simply blown away with the immense power of the attack. As the attack petered off and the light faded, the little wings that had served as the shapeshifter's tiara fluttered to the ground to top the pile of ash: the only thing left of an enemy that had harassed them so thoroughly before. Princess Sailor Moon lowered her wand slowly, her shoulders shaking as she breathed deeply from the effort of using her powers.

In the quiet moment following, East King, brushing his hair back out of his eyes from his position on the floor, enthusiastically called, "Yeah! What did I say?! She _kicks ass!"_ causing Usagi to smile proudly. North, shaking his head, got off East and turned to get eyes on Mamoru before offering the brunet a hand up. Mamoru approached, the danger over, dropping the rose as he let Rin slide back down to the floor.

"It wasn't just me," Sailor Moon said, the wand disappearing, no longer needed. "Jupiter and Venus weakened it first; last time I tried that, she survived to mock me and fly away." She grinned at her friends, and while Jupiter smiled back with a small, incredulous shake of her head, Venus's smile was an empty thing - while outwardly fine, Mamoru noticed the way her jaw was set.

"You've definitely changed, Princess," Jupiter said fondly, placing her hand on Usagi's head between her twin buns, avoiding the little crown. "I like it," she added softly, and Usagi's eyes brightened.

"Well, that's _two_ down," East stated, wiping his hands as though knocking dust from his gloves. "Two to go - the orange one and the purple one. Think West and South took care of them already, or should we circle back?" Nero looked back towards the crater expectantly, as though half-expecting them to materialize out of the gloom. Mamoru looked, too; Khalid had a sixth sense for dramatic entrances. Rin left his side to join Usagi, taking her hand in his.

North quirked a brow with a deadpan expression, raised his wrist, and a quick twist of thumb and forefinger, both his and East's communicators went off.

Right. Communicators. He tried to make as though he hadn't forgotten about them in the moment, adjusting the dials to noon to stop the beeping and open the channel as Nero muttered something about Kaito "being smart". Khalid's face popped into focus immediately, but Yuu wasn't answering yet.

West King reported succinctly, "Purple shapeshifter down; Mercury has located Mars and South and we're heading to intercept them now."

"Do you want us to wait for you?" North asked, glancing at Venus warily.

"Not necessary," Khalid replied, "Her computer can sense life-signs; we'll rendezvous when -" he paused, looking off-screen. "_There."_ He moved to shut the screen, but just before he did they heard another voice, "_Mercury Aqua Mist!"_

Venus nodded her head sharply. "That's her screening attack. Kunzite will make short work of the remaining enemy and they'll meet up with us soon." She took a definitive step forward and walked in the direction Rin had earlier indicated, speaking with a tone that left no room to argue: "Let's find this 'Sailor Pluto' and get out of here."

There was no reason to argue with her - though East looked annoyed enough by her tone to try - so they followed, Rin holding the little key out ahead of him to periodically check its glow. He didn't know what to say at first; there were so many questions to ask, but whether he should ask them or not was the hold-up. Should they know more about their future? … especially if Rin was here specifically to change it? Would Rin even be returning to the world he knew, now that his goal of awakening the senshi had been met? Were they the key, then, to avoiding the future he had seen in Rin's past when he took his hand that day they met, only a week ago? … if they _were_ the key, what did that say of the Kings? Were they… He swallowed. … But then Rin had commented on how much stronger they were - just now, in the fight against the two Doom and Bloom Girls. Maybe they had changed, too, between the past Rin knew and the future path they were now set upon. Was that how time operated, though? Wouldn't their present changing drastically from Rin's past alter Rin's present and potentially take him out of their time entirely? But that would, in turn, potentially change the reasons _for_ their changes and - he had to stop thinking about that. The paradox potential for their situation nearly overwhelmed him, so he tried to put it aside and - failing that - put effort into coming up with distinct questions for Rin's Guardian when they found her.

They were joined by their missing party members not long after; Mercury and Mars wordlessly taking Jupiter's place ahead of them, the green senshi dropping back to be closer to Sailor Moon, standing to the outside of the group and keeping an eye open, though less warily than she had before Mercury had joined them. East fell into place beside South and the pair of them started talking quietly but animatedly; judging by East's shadowboxing, it was about the Doom and Gloom girls. Helios glided in beside him, taking his customary place, but he remained quiet.

"_Where_ are we?" West asked quietly.

"The Dimension of the Space-Time Door," North dutifully replied, "We are heading towards the door and its Guardian, _Sailor Pluto."_

"_Sailor Pluto?"_ Helios repeated, "_I wasn't aware… there are more than the four?"_ the unisus looked expectantly towards Sailor Venus, apparently expanding his speech to include their team, but the golden-haired guardian remained quiet.

"They all had different missions," Rin offered quietly, "Venus, Jupiter, Mars, and Mercury are the Guardians - they protected the Moon Kingdom and Princess Serenity from threats born within the solar system. Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto protected the Moon Kingdom from threats originating outside the solar system." The kid's revelation was made with his head down, still staring at the key he held in his hands as he walked forward. Sailor Moon lightly put her hand on his shoulder, encouraging him to continue in his sudden willingness to answer questions -

"Where are Uranus and Neptune now?"

"Is there a Sailor Saturn?"

North and South asked simultaneously, the latter holding his hand up to stop East's story so he could better hear. East closed his mouth and started listening; Mamoru turned to Sailor Moon; Luna had mentioned these outer-system senshi in passing, but, if he remembered correctly, she had said they were _not_ reborn.

Rin glanced up from the key to look at Venus, but she wasn't paying any attention to him, so he looked over to the Kings. "Uranus and Neptune are gone, and Saturn is locked within her planet."

"Gone?" North repeated, and Rin shrugged.

"That's what Luna said."

"You are in contact with Luna?" Venus asked, breaking her silence.

Rin nodded, admitting as though it were a secret, "Until a few months ago, when she went silent. I thought Helios had caught me and told her not to talk to me about that anymore, but now…" his hand gripped the key tighter, his voice catching as he continued, "I should have _said something_, but I thought I was in trouble and -" he sniffed, "and I thought Helios didn't talk to me about it because I _knew_ I wasn't supposed to ask about them, but -"

He had started to cry, and that was about all Mamoru could take of that. He took two longer strides forward to catch up to the halting steps of the redheaded boy and knelt to get closer to his level. Rin stopped and hurriedly let go of the key with one hand to scrub at his eyes with the heel of his palm and Mamoru's heart ached just looking at him. "It's okay, Rin," he soothed, hesitantly reaching out for him, only then realizing he didn't have a lot of practice with this part, or role models he remembered well for this. Rin shook his head, taking deep breaths and holding them to force the tears away in a move Mamoru knew only too well, and he overcame the hesitation and pulled the kid to him in a hug. Rin was stiff, still trying to be strong, but he broke down after a moment, both hands wrapping to lock behind Mamoru's neck as he buried his face in the neck of Mamoru's uniform.

"_It's all my fault," _Rin cried, "_If I had said something, it wouldn't have been able to get stronger, and they wouldn't have -"_ he broke off in a hiccupping sob, and as his arms pulled Mamoru closer, he responded to squeeze Rin a little tighter. He looked up and Usako was there, one gloved hand placed comfortingly into the mass of red hair. They rode out the worst of it, though they could only guess what Rin had meant or what he was going to say.

"You weren't supposed to know about the Sailor Senshi, Rin?" South asked, his tone carefully gentle; Rin took a deep breath and shook his head, still pressed into Mamoru's collar, and South continued, "Why not?"

"_Ma-"_ he paused, catching himself before he continued, still speaking into Mamoru's chest, "My mother wanted to tell me about them, but I got impatient."

"That happens to everyone," East shrugged, coming up behind him, "and everyone makes mistakes, but not _everyone_ tries to fix them, so you're already doing a lot better than most people out there." Mamoru tilted his head to see him, and Nero caught his eye for just a second before looking back at the mass of red hair, "You done crying? I'll give you a ride for a bit if you are, but if you're not then you're walking - my hair isn't a handkerchief, got it?" Rin's hold around his neck started to loosen, and Nero took that as an answer, crouching down to accept him and pulling his hair to one side. "Limited time only, kid. Offer to be the tallest person here expires in five, four, three -" Rin let go and stepped back, moving around without looking at Mamoru towards Nero, "- _wipe the tears first _\- two - _ow!_ Watch the hair, remember?" he chided, and Mamoru got to his feet as Rin maneuvered his arms and legs around Nero's mass of wavy brown hair as East finished the countdown and shot to his feet to jostle Rin into holding on tight. "One and we're off. Which way does that key point?" he asked, immediately setting off in the wrong direction.

The rest of them started to move again, heading in the correct direction as East continued to play dumb with Rin, heading one way then the other and cheering him up as the senshi gathered a little closer to hear an explanation. West offered what he could, succinctly explaining Rin's sudden appearance and what he had admitted to on the rooftop not half an hour before - that he was Prince Mamoru Lord Endymion, son of King Endymion and Neo-Queen Serenity of _Crystal_ Tokyo, and he had traveled _back in time_ for the single reason of awakening _them_. He added that the creatures they had just disposed of had been after him since his arrival, and, as East careened by with Rin on his shoulders, the kid holding onto his head as the King leaned precariously to one side in a half-run, North asked Mamoru to recall again what he had seen when he first took Rin's hand, the context of his being from the future giving them far more insight than they had had before.

Mamoru described the scenes again: the first, with the woman alone atop a tower, the scene shaking with explosions all around her, lit from the front by a bleaching white light; the second, with the burning city in chaos and the oppressive feeling from above; and the third, with Rin being chased in darkness.

"Chased by the Doom and Gloom girls," North surmised, "Was it here?"

He closed his eyes, recalling the image, and ultimately shook his head. "It didn't have the mist and the openness this place has."

"The burning city and the tower has to be Crystal Tokyo," Jupiter mused, "and the bright light and explosions - could that be what caused the chaos in the city below?"

"Maybe," Mars said, but continued in a different direction. "He said he came back to our time to awaken us, right?" she asked rhetorically, and South nodded to urge her to continue, "So, in his time, we were not part of any of this - now we _will _be, so will any of this come to pass, then? Especially with our knowing what we do now?" She turned to find Rin and East, "We should learn as much about this as we can, and that way none of this should happen and he should walk right back to a happy ending and whatever evil caused the chaos in those visions won't have the chance to do that."

"Hmn," Mercury hummed thoughtfully, "but would it work like that? We did not awaken in Rin's past, so Rin coming back to our time must have served as a catalyst for this change; if we fix whatever's happening in his time before it happens, he would have no reason to come to the past to awaken us."

"A paradox," North nodded.

"A what?" Sailor Moon asked, looking up at North and then him.

"A self-contradiction," he explained, only too familiar with this chain of thought. "If Rin travelling back to our time caused the senshi to awaken, then they would already be awake in his time so he wouldn't come back to ours to wake them up."

"...So then they wouldn't wake up in our time and wouldn't be awake in his time so he would come back to our time and wake them up but then they would… oh." Her brows furrowed cutely, and he wished he could make it simpler than that, or solve this outright, but that was the paradox. But then her expression cleared, "But he didn't make you guys wake up, did he?"

They looked at each other, and Jupiter shook her head. "I… I was in my apartment. The power was out and the wind was howling and making the windows shake, and then it all died down and there was a bright flash of light and I… remembered. I knew it was you, and that you were in trouble."

Mercury nodded along, indicating a similar story, "I knew him from your introduction of him, but beyond seeing him in the arcade I never ran into him."

"It was the Silver Crystal that awakened us," Venus stated definitively, "not him."

"Then maybe this paradox isn't even a thing?" Sailor Moon suggested, "The Silver Crystal woke them up, not Rin, so…" her idea lost steam.

"He's already come to our past, Usagi-chan," South said quietly, "I -"

But whatever he was going to say was cut off by two cries - one higher pitched than the other - and they all turned to find that East and Rin had traveled beyond their range of vision. West took off towards the sound, his sword in hand, and Mercury had her computer up and her fingers flew across the keys; he and the other Kings followed after West -

"North by northwest!" Mercury shouted in warning, "Energy's building!"

"Get down!" Venus shouted, and behind him he heard a sharp _oof!_ as one of her senshi tackled Princess Sailor Moon to the ground.

"_Dead… Scream."_

* * *

**A/N: **Thank you for reading Chapter 1!

BEFORE CONTINUING THOUGH, (*_ _)人 a pre-apology for potentially reusing things in this arc that I had used in the original arc XD I mixed and matched season elements in arcs 1 and 2 and so now I'm on 3 and I may end up reusing my favorite schticks _for teh drama_ and I know that can get annoying _but, like, I can't _not_ so ... _(シ_ _)シ

|･д･)ﾉ And please forgive any senshi characterization issues! They're _stressed as hell_ and _terrified of messing up again_ and _trying their best with a princess who now thinks she's a powerful warrior and maybe she _is _a powerful warrior but what does that mean for them and their duty _and life just got hard for them okay? _poor bbs_.

ヽ( ‿ )ノ follows/favorites/reviews feed this beast! I adore feedback - whether it's questions, reactions, comments, concerns, or corrections (hahaha... I miss things ^^'), I love to hear from people when they read my stuff - it pushes me to write more XD. So if you have anything to say when reading or after reading, feel free to comment or send me a PM!


	2. Time Warp

Chapter 2: Both In Time and Out of Time

Energy erupted all around them and he was thrown to the ground, a body landing on top of him with another gruff oof as the attack flew over their heads. _"Honestly,"_ North grumbled, crawling to stay low as he got off, "Come back to life _twice_ and you think you're immune now or something?"

He rolled his eyes for North; honestly, he hadn't thought he'd be a target - he could barely make out the others ahead of them and took it for granted that an attack would be aimed at East and Rin rather than between the two larger groups of people. He got up to his knees to a tsk noise out of Kaito and found, near his hand, a chunky, boomerang-like tiara with feathers - similar to the feathers that remained after Sailor Moon's attack caused the Doom and Bloom girl to disintegrate, but this one's extra accessory was familiar - and cold, with an impact crack moving through it. Not _directly_ a product of that blast. He gripped it to show it to North, handing it over before he got back to his feet -

"You are forbidden…to pass beyond this point!" a voice rang out, the words strong at first but fading as the owner stopped to take a ragged breath. They were hurt. His eyes searching the mist ahead of them, he moved towards the sound of the pained voice, his hunch as to whom it belonged soon realized: "I am she who governs the Door of Time and Space, the Keeper of the Underworld, Sailor Pluto!" She panted, and he saw a prone figure through the mist ahead - "and all who violate this taboo shall be eliminated!"

What had happened to her?

_"Dead Scream!"_ she cried, and he barely managed to cover his face through the main brunt of the attack, feeling entirely foolish for not seeing that coming. The attack pushed him back a few feet, but he managed to stay standing -

"Cardinal King!" someone yelled from behind, but the moment the attack let up he stepped forward again, practically able to feel the pain radiating off of her now. Close enough to see her, he started walking faster, calling the Golden Crystal to bear, stopping only when she maneuvered her staff to point directly at him, using both arms and the structure behind her to aim the staff and not fall over from its weight. She was bleeding, broken, barely able to catch her breath, but the garnet gem at the end of her staff glowed ominously regardless.

"Cardinal King, it doesn't matter who you are," she panted, pained, "No one can be allowed to break these laws. My mission now… is to eliminate you." The gem glowed brighter, and he ran through his options -

"Sailor Pluto, wait!" Rin screamed, and, to an outburst from at least two Kings, the kid came running out of the mist towards her, coming in as though he was going to hug her, but upon seeing her he skidded to a stop by her side, not knowing where he could touch, his face falling and eyes searching hers.

"Little Lord," she said weakly, struggling to smile for him, but her gaze remained on Mamoru to keep her aim straight.

"Please, it's not what you think! They came with me here, don't kill them!" he sat down beside her, reaching forward to try to find a place to touch her, but his hand hovered, "I'm sorry - this is all my fault!"

At his admission, the glow at the end of the staff faded and Mamoru started forward again, stopping to crouch on Pluto's other side and his hands hovered above her body, too, but with a purpose that Rin's lacked. Gently he called the crystal's energy to bear and sent it out, aware from the start this time that he had no Earth beneath him to draw upon for extra power; he wouldn't have enough to heal her completely, but he could stabilize her and mend the worst of it. She'd have scrapes and bruises and she'd need to treat newly healed bones gingerly for a time, but that would leave him with enough personal energy to continue to function. As he worked, everyone - slowly - closed in. At a silent request from the mysterious senshi, he moved his focus to the arm closest Rin before returning to the more serious internal injuries, and Pluto reached up with that hand to take Rin's, patiently waiting for him to continue.

"I'm sorry I broke my promise," Rin said, swallowing hard. "You told me not to tell anyone, but they protected me and were pulled in with me - it's not their fault, it's mine!"

"Little Lord… where have you been?" she asked, the emphasis on her words having implications beyond a simple 'where'.

Rin looked down, his free hand clenching the fabric of his school shorts, the elementary school uniform looking completely out of place here. "I thought… if I could awaken the Sailor Senshi in the past, they would have been stronger, and they could have-"

Pluto squeezed his hand and he quieted before he could say what he wanted from them in his time. "That's not how it works," she gently chided, "and you would have known that if you had talked to me about it. You broke a promise to me, you stole a time key and traveled to the past without asking me," she scolded, and Rin hung his head lower, but then she released her hold on his hand to put it on his cheek. "I'm glad you're safe, Little Lord. Please don't ever make me worry like that again." She moved her hand from his cheek to the top of his head to weakly ruffle his hair before dropping her arm back to her side. She closed her eyes solemnly before opening, moving her gaze across everyone gathered there. "Please forgive the rude way I treated you, after you were so kind as to bring our Prince safely home."

"You were only doing your duty," Venus replied, and he was glad that another senshi had answered; he felt it would resonate more.

"Please, Sailor Pluto," North asked, "What happened here?"

"I failed," Pluto stated, leaning back against what Mamoru now saw was an elaborate arched door, tall and intricate and imposing. "Through the use of one of my own keys, six entities escaped to your time and changed the course of your history," Rin's other hand joined his first in clenching his shorts. The six had been him and his attackers - the Doom and Gloom Girls. "And, not long ago, I was attacked by one such entity as it attempted to use the door." He looked to North, and North held up the broken tiara.

_"That's_ what I tripped on," East commented; South reached up as though to clamp the brunet's mouth shut, but East caught the hand and _quietly_ held it at bay.

Pluto nodded, "But as I destroyed it, a second being defeated me and made it past into Little Lord's time."

"Another of the Bloom Girls?" Jupiter asked.

Mercury shook her head, "She had said six entities had escaped to our time - Rin and five others."

"With Pluto taking out the last, the Bloom Girls are gone," Mars stated, running with Jupiter's recollection of their name. North looked like he wanted to correct them, but with Mars's next question, his mouth shut thoughtfully: "What was the last, then? What else came with us?"

Pluto looked up, staring at the door behind her, "It must have been hiding in one of them but now…" she shook her head, clearing her throat. "It is no longer your concern; it passed through your time without causing harm, despite the damage it might have done if it had stayed. And the other…" she pressed her lips together, and, breathing easier, changed the subject. "Thank you for seeing the young Prince to me," she said, sitting up straighter. To Mamoru, she said, "And thank you for your help, Cardinal King, despite everything." She put the butt of her staff to the ground and used it to help herself stand, drawing everyone else up to their feet. "If you give me a moment, I can return you to your time -"

"But what about Rin?" Sailor Moon interrupted.

"And the "other" you mentioned?" North added.

"Without the creatures that were chasing him, he should be able to make it back home unharassed," Pluto said, putting one hand on Rin's back supportively, "and the other is not your responsibility. You have just overcome an enormous obstacle and saved your world - take the time to celebrate your victory, and your reunion," she said, glancing towards the senshi.

"Getting home wasn't Rin's problem," Sailor Moon pressed, shaking her head, vocalizing the unease Mamoru felt at the mere mention of turning back now. Pluto had said that what Rin attempted, heading to the past, 'didn't work that way', so that meant he was going back with nothing having changed. Those visions he had seen had still occurred.

"Rin came to our time for back-up, right?" Mamoru asked, "Even if he didn't get it the way he had planned, he's still got it." Rin's head shot up, red eyes bearing into his in a mix of shock and hope that cemented Mamoru's hand in this. "What do you say, Kings?" he asked rhetorically, holding the kid's gaze reassuringly.

"I'm up for it," East declared, playing along, "Sure, we just saved the world _again,_ but I woke up from a prolonged nap and I've got a few new toys to play with, so why not?"

South nodded. North, his arms crossed in front of his chest, rolled his eyes at East, but shifted his weight to the foot closer to Mamoru, nonverbally showing his support of the idea. He sensed West's gaze and looked up, not sure what to expect, but all he said was, "I go where you go."

"I'm coming, too," Princess Sailor Moon smiled, "I'll help you, Rin -"

_"Princess!"_ Venus hissed, taking Sailor Moon's hand and pulling her back, the other three moving to keep up with them.

"One second!" Jupiter smiled brightly, waving a hand at them before joining a whispering huddle, her expression immediately dropping into something more serious.

Not one to wait, North asked Pluto, "So, the 'other'?"

"A new host," Pluto replied, and with that, the door behind her started to open, "which means there isn't much time." She paused, taking a key from her belt, and handed it to Cardinal King. He took it. "Use this key and pray to Chronos, and you will return to my side. The door is open to you." She stepped aside, and Rin reached forward, taking his hand. "Please watch over Little Lord, and do what you can."

"This way, Mamoru," Rin said, pulling him towards the light that spilled out from between the enormous doors. Helios joined them, his friends right by his side as they walked through the door, into the future…

...and arrived in a hellscape.

They were standing on a rooftop overlooking a city that - at one time - must have been beautiful, but now only the geometry of its layout gave the illusion of grandeur. Everything was blackened, burned, twisted, frozen in a half-melted state, including the ground beneath their feet. South took a few steps back towards more stable surface and the metal beneath him stopped creaking. Smoke hung in the air like a miasma, and the streets below looked blasted, lined with spent matchsticks that must once have been trees. It was horrible, and it was quiet.

"Rin, is this…?" North asked, and Rin just held his hand tighter in response.

_"The Palace?"_ Helios said, his question-like suggestion drawing their attention away from the devastation at their feet and towards the crystalline structure in the middle of the city. Piercing the sky, it would have been breathtaking, were it not for its surroundings and its blackened exterior. _"We should get to the Palace,"_ he said, with less uncertainty. It sounded like a plan - the crystalline structure was the only thing around that wasn't melted.

"Is the Palace safe, Rin?" West pressed, holding out a hand to stop anyone from moving yet.

Rin nodded, "For now. …so long as you stay inside."

"Well, guess now's as good a time as any to see if these new capes work the same as the last ones," East said, stretching out his arms to either side of his body and then over his head as he approached the edge of the building. "I'll be guinea pig: I'll turn it into a crater if I don't slow down -"

North released a long-suffering sigh, his right hand to his forehead, "Or you could use your new _trident_ and slow your descent _that way."_

East turned, mouth open in a smile and his finger touching his nose, pointing at North, "See, _this_ is why you're the idea guy!"

"Is it _really_ that hard to-?!"

"We're here, too!" Princess Sailor Moon exclaimed, suddenly appearing behind them, startling everyone. North jumped forward and spun to face her sudden arrival and in the process fell off the edge of the building; West lunged after him, catching his hand before he fell too far, but in the sudden materialization of _everyone_ on that one rooftop, the surface began to creak and snap beneath them.

"Capes work!" East's voice echoed up between the buildings, and with a nod, West and North released their grip on each other and North fell. West turned and reached for Rin, and Mamoru let go of the kid's hand. Rin looked up at him before letting go, too, and taking West's hand before both of them went over the edge. Mamoru pulled Sailor Moon in, keeping her close to the side of his chest that had the half-cape, just in case, and turned to see that the other senshi were alright - "Go!" Venus cried, and he saw South take Mercury's hand and South waited for him to go before they went. Frowning at the idea of leaving them behind, he jumped over the edge, believing the structure of the roof to hold if there were only three there as opposed to ten - but he needn't have worried. On the way down, he passed East going back up, standing on one prong of his upended trident as it rose through the air on pillars of stone. East flashed him an okay sign and leaned on the staff of his new utility-weapon, trying to look casual as he appeared over the edge of the rooftop. He couldn't help but shake his head. Nero.

They alighted on the ground no worse for wear, and Rin was immediately back, holding his hand tight. West had his trident touching the edge of the building, veins of metal snaking their way up to reinforce the collapsing roof, but he stopped as East, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus appeared at the top of the column of rock East had created. In a series of smaller pillars made by East jumping and creating one at the last moment, the four of them were soon on street level and there was a new circular stairstep feature in the middle of the road leading to the top of the nearest highrise.

"So, that Crystal Palace?" East suggested as Helios casually coasted to their level, his attention towards the center of the city and the structure there.

"Rin said it's safe," West clarified, dismissing his new weapon as he took point, and Venus released a sigh and joined him, Mercury falling into place behind her, mini computer open and blue visor across her face. Jupiter was on their right, offering him a smile, and Mars was on their left - distinctly not offering him any sort of friendly expression as she peered down side streets as they passed them. The Kings fell in around them, their organization less rigid.

"Mamo-rin said he needed the Sailor Senshi," Sailor Moon stated with a smile, explaining their sudden appearance, "So we're here to help."

"Mercury?" Venus prompted sharply, voicing an apparent disagreement with the situation.

"The source was above the city," Mercury diligently reported, "and the readings show the char is slightly irradiated."

"Irradiated?" North repeated, clarifying, "as in _everything_ around us is emitting high energy radiation?"

Mercury nodded, and Mamoru clenched his jaw, wondering if the Golden Crystal would heal any complications that may arise from that. "Senshi aren't affected," Rin stated, and he saw Jupiter relax a bit, "And Helios didn't think the Kings would be either, but he's sure the Golden Crystal would have healed any damage done, regardless."

East caught up to him, gripped his shoulder and shook him in over-the-top affection. "Thanks, Mamoru!" he cheesed, "Taking care of us so we don't get cancer, you're the best." Mamoru rolled his eyes, though he was glad that Nero was so willing to act out to attempt to make things seem a little less dire.

"Rin," South asked, his voice purposefully light. Rin gave him his attention as they walked, though his hands were still firmly holding on to his and Usako's. "When you said Helios 'didn't think' the Kings would be affected - what did you -"

**"Well if it isn't Little Red!"**

The direction South was moving with his question was one that Mamoru had let slip past when he was thinking about the implications of the radiation, and uncertainty came with the realization of Rin's use of past tense - but then a person was materializing out of the pavement ahead of them and those thoughts were thrust aside to deal with that. West rushed towards the assumed enemy with his sword drawn -

_"Behind!"_ Helios and Mercury said as one, and Mamoru released Rin's hand to spin and face it, trusting Princess Sailor Moon to protect the kid for the moment, a rose coming to his hand and snapping into his sword. Another person - a male with silver hair, silver makeup, shining silver sleeveless shirt, and pants - was sliding out of the metal surface of a building, grinning -

**"Long time no see, Little Red!"** he cheered, but upon seeing them he tilted his head to the side, and his hair dripped onto his shoulder as his grin turned into a smirk as he recognized them, **"Didn't we kill you already? - Oniwabandana, didn't we kill these guys already?!"**

West hissed in disappointment and the woman who had appeared out of the pavement was now behind them with the other, appearing from the head down as she emerged out of the pavement effortlessly, revealing an outfit straight out of old ninja films. **"Well, isn't this interesting, banban? Though it wasn't us specifically that killed them, was it?"**

_Killed_ them?!

**"You get what I meant - like the royal 'We' - Ferrocerium, Staballoy, Tethys, whoever it was."** He paused, finally fully emerging from the building, and, beside him, North's spear materialized. **"They're going to be pissed when they find out you guys were up and around again."**

_"The Palace will be safe - watch out for Rin!"_ Helios warned, _"He, Cardinal King and Sailor Moon may be targets!"_

Where was he getting that information?!

**"Think we'll get their perks if we take them out this time?"** the silver guy asked, his lipstick running down his face as he grinned at his accomplice.

The ninja produced throwing stars,** "Only one way to find out, banban. And remember, Solder, don't kill the kid."**

**"Accidents happen,"** Solder replied and melted back into the metal in the wall - until Norths' spear landed in the metal wall beside him and froze his body in place, ice spreading all around the impact site in a sheet.

"Woops," North deadpanned, his whip appearing in his empty hand, and then he ducked, pulling South out of the way as two throwing stars streaked through the air, bouncing off the pavement near where they had been.

**"Oh, dear, banban,"** the ninja called, now floating above the street. She fanned her hands and they filled with more sharpened shuriken. One brow quirked, she rose higher, and Mamoru looked around for any sort of shield they could use - **"Looks like I'm outnumbered."**

_"Run!"_ Helios shouted, _"She can replicate!"_

In disbelief, Mamoru's gaze shot back up to the floating form of their enemy; she blinked out of sight once and suddenly there were two of them - twice, and there were four. Three times, sixteen Oniwabandanas, _all armed -_

"Mercury Aqua Mist!" Mercury cried out and they were surrounded in a freezing mist that hid them from the enemy, but also from each other. He dropped his sword and spun, reaching for where he had let go of Rin, but the kid wasn't there anymore - he dropped to touch the Earth, spread his hand on the pavement and reached out to find him through psylocation -

"I got the kid!" East called from somewhere to his right -

_"Quiet, or she'll find you! Head to the palace!"_

Rin's glow was right with Nero's - which was no longer green, but orange? - and Usako was with Jupiter and - he pushed himself up and started to run alongside everyone else - he assumed Kaito was dark green now because a soul that color was right where North had been, and Yuu was red now instead of green, and there had been no pink Kunzite's shade, so Khalid was probably the light blue glow? The senshi's colors were all exactly as he remembered them being - jewel tones of green, red, blue, and yellow - and Usako's silver crystal color was the same, so it was just the four of them affected? Did it have to do with what happened on the ship? The Shitennou? Occasionally, as the enemy threw her throwing stars in at them in a shower of knives and Mercury shielded them from sight again, Mamoru would reach out with his power to double-check that everyone was still keeping up and would double-check that the colors hadn't been a fluke.

_"The palace is just ahead!"_ Helios announced, _"East, get Rin to the front!"_

The mist ended with meters to go before a solid wall of clear crystal jut straight out of the ground ahead of them; East put on some speed to get ahead and, as he and Rin approached, a tall set of elaborate doors started to materialize, opening for them. East and the kid disappeared inside, followed by Jupiter and Sailor Moon. Venus and West waited to usher everyone else inside before they entered.

**"There you are, banban!"** tens of voices said as one, and Mercury hesitated at the door, but Venus pushed her inside and reached for Mars. South turned, summoning his trident, and a spray of fire followed the arc of the weapon, causing the enemy to blanch away from it, letting them slide across the crystalline surface to enter through the door without the rain of shuriken flying towards their unprotected backs. The moment South and West crossed the threshold, the last of them, East slammed the door shut and they heard hundreds of pieces of metal bounce off the exterior.

All of them panting to catch their breath, Mamoru approached Mercury and held out his hand. Behind him, he heard North complain: "I hate… long distance… running…" and he coughed; East, panting just as hard, eloquently returned, "Nerd." Mercury hesitantly took his hand, as though to accept a handshake, and as he directed healing energy into her he quietly thanked her for providing cover, mending the cuts she had acquired. She nodded, accepting his thanks, and returned the sentiment for healing her. "Do _either_ of you…" South asked shrewdly, standing straight and staring in towards the main Palace, "have _any_ sense… of setting?" Neither Usako or Mars had any injuries, probably due to Jupiter for the former, and maybe blind luck for the latter, but that meant he turned to Jupiter next, and, finally, offered to heal Venus's small array; she grudgingly let him, though she stared pointedly into the castle instead of anywhere near him while he sent the energy through her.

Everyone's breath coming easier, Mamoru finished up with healing his friends and offering his hand to Helios, who rejected him, eyes glued to the interior, and, finally, Mamoru looked in, ready to face whatever came next.

Rin waited for them in an antechamber - an enormous room accented in gold and alabaster stone with intricate patterns and artwork, columns that stretched to the vaulted crystalline ceiling. It was indescribable - _breathtaking_ \- and he paused to take it all in when they reached the middle of the room; their reflections were hazy on the polished floor, but the colors of the senshi's uniforms and the black of theirs intermingled in the crystalline dome above them to create rainbows of light and darkness across the room. There were six exits to the room; Rin's red hair stood out in the entrance to one particular direction, and he followed. Sailor Moon caught up to him and took his hand, and he held hers as they followed him down one long hallway and out into a chamber even bigger than the first, separated into sections by crystalline walls and drapery in silver and gold, highly decorative but having no other apparent function. Rin kept moving and they followed, until he paused, looking towards an archway expectantly. They waited for something to happen, but then Rin kept moving.

"Where is everyone, Rin?" South asked quietly, and the kid hung his shoulders until -

"Sleeping, for now."

They all looked up to find the source of the sound, the voice familiar but completely unexpected - and found in a faint beam of light a ghostly figure of a young man with broad shoulders in white robes. His hair hung around his head like a cloud, at once straight and curling and floating, despite the rest of his clothing apparently following gravity's pull without question. His sleeves were long and semitransparent, cuffed in dark blue silk that matched the belt on his opaque robes and the lining of the split front and back of his long shirt and the slippers on his feet; there were five golden, tasseled pendants in a 'v' across his upper chest, two golden chokers visible through the transparent material of his collar, the material there a metallic green that matched accents on the shoulders of his tunic. He stood tall and solemn, and as his honey-colored eyes staring solely at Rin across the distance, his hair moved to show a garnet-colored gem in the middle of his forehead. But, most telling - more than the garnet gem and purple-silver hair and the voice and the intense familiarity Mamoru felt, the golden horn that sprouted from the middle of his head left no question as to who it was, just question as to _how_ -

Rin ran over to him and reached out, only to stop, pull his hand back, and bow his head. "I'm glad you're home safely," the ghostly figure said, going through the motions of putting his hand on Rin's head. "Your journey to the past was a dangerous one… but as a Prince, Little Lord, you made the right decision." He removed his hand to place it on his heart and to the rest of them he bowed. "Welcome to Crystal Tokyo, and to the Crystal Palace." Straightening, he looked out across the empty room and continued, "though I wish it had been in better circumstances, rather than the midst of battle… I… didn't want you to see a future like this." He looked away from them, motioning them forward, and Mamoru took the first step, following the impossible specter to see where it would lead. "I apologize if my form has startled you - my body is in Elysion, locking the sacred ground from within, less they find it; just think of this as my ghost walking around without my body. I am High Priest Helios," he turned, looking over his shoulder at the unisus that flew on Mamoru's left, "One and the same."

Helios… was human? Well - that he _had_ been a human made sense, but he - how had he never thought to try to remember him as he had been before… but he was going to be human again? His unisus form wasn't permanent?

_"You're the one that's been talking to me since we arrived?"_ Helios asked, and Helios - High Priest Helios, human Helios, ghost Helios - other Helios answered: "Yes. It was easiest to make a connection to you, my past self, through telepathy rather than attempting to explain myself to anyone else." He paused, turning to Rin, "Little Lord, have you made your introductions?"

Rin nodded, and South piped up in his defense, "As soon as West figured him out."

Helios smiled, "Good. I trust it was gracious?"

Rin nodded again, and this time North backed him up, "A little disconcerting, but he was polite. Now, when he said he was the son of _King Endymion_ and _Neo Queen Serenity,_ how many generations are between him and our Mamoru and Usagi-chan?"

"Just the one," Helios replied, going down a short set of crystalline stairs, though he made no sound and caused no reflection in any of the walls surrounding them. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Usako blushing, which made him blush, the whole 'just don't think about it' idea completely lost at that point.

"So Crystal Tokyo is…" North trailed off, as though trying to lead Helios to an answer, but the question wasn't entirely obvious. He tried again, "Just _when_ are we now? How far in the future? Did this much change happen in…?"

Helios didn't turn around at first, and Mamoru thought he saw his shoulders shake once before he replied entirely seriously, "Zoisite, you do not want that going through your head on top of everything else. Aging works differently now; thanks to the combined powers of the Golden and Silver Crystals, you all generally stopped aging in your mid-twenties. The rest of Tokyo followed suit once Endymion and Serenity ascended the throne, and in the time since, all citizens of Earth have enjoyed lifespans much longer than any had thought possible in the past. That being said," Helios stopped, looking out over a connected room, and Mamoru moved to the edge to see what he saw and froze.

In an antechamber below them, on eight raised pedestals, was everyone. His Kings, lifeless, their bodies carefully arranged, arms straight by their sides. The Senshi, too, were arranged there, their hands over their stomachs peacefully.

"All of that may end if we cannot put a stop to Metallia."


	3. Crystal Tokyo

"They're only sleeping?" Mamoru asked in the silence, his eyes concentrating on the lifeless bodies of his friends in the room beneath them, staring hard to see the rise and fall of their chests to catch their breathing, not quite brave enough to use psylocation and find out the answer definitively. This was why Rin had used the past tense when he explained the radiation. What had Pluto said? Anything about reversing this? Fixing this?

"Comas," Helios replied, and Mamoru released the breath he hadn't been aware he was holding. Comatose was still alive; though, as he found out with Usako, it was not a state the Golden Crystal was successful in alleviating. But they were alive and, given enough time, they could recover. Would recover. They just had to give them that time.

"Where is Serenity?" Venus stood at the edge of the balcony, one hand gripping the railing as she stared down at her future self, only then turning a hard gaze on human-Helios.

"Resting," Helios reassured, holding up his hands placatingly. "The last battle took a lot out of her, and the subsequent small scale attacks on the survivors by agents like the two you ran into earlier are wearing her down, but there's not much we can do to alleviate it - we opened the Palace as a Keep and hundreds of citizens came to us for safety, but one of them made it through and pulled off an attack right beneath our very noses - it was unsafe to continue with such measures, especially after the last guardian -" he cut himself off. "We did our best, but our best wasn't good enough, and Serenity and the citizens of Crystal Tokyo are paying the price."

"I thought Rin came to our time to awaken us?" Jupiter asked, "But… we're already awakened here?"

Helios - both of them - turned to Rin, who wouldn't venture into the space at all, instead standing in the outer room. "Rin?" the High Priest prompted.

"I… messed up," Rin said to his toes, and at a slight disapproving noise from human Helios, he straightened and looked right at Jupiter to say, "I made a mistake. I meant to awaken you guys before the Archons arrived, so that you'd have more experience with fighting and you would have already been awake when the attacks started happening, but I miscalculated and got there too late."

"Too late?" East marveled, "You came the day we defeated Diana, any earlier than that and you'd've been fighting Senshi instead of attempting to get Usagi-chan to bring them back in on the action."

Human Helios's expression changed, his brows furrowing momentarily before he locked his eyes on Rin. "But you arrived too late?"

"The Archons attacked two days later," East continued, "They weren't even out of the hospital by then."

Rin kept Helios's gaze without shrinking, but his voice was small when he said, "I made a mistake."

"But… you didn't." Helios replied, turning to look at East critically, a curled index finger on his ghostly chin as he examined the King of the East.

"Our uniforms," North nodded knowingly, and when Mamoru looked back at him he nodded his head back towards the comatose Kings; he was right, they weren't wearing the same uniforms - they wore what they had during their past lives, during the Golden Kingdom, but then Mamoru could wear his Endymion gear, and they had worn those uniforms in Elysion after Usako had sealed away Queen Serenity, why would that matter?

"Your stones," Helios stopped, looking from East to South, then to West -

"When were the Archons supposed to arrive?" West asked, outwardly undisturbed.

"Two months after the Moon Queen was sealed away," Helios stated, moving to look at North's pendant, and then, finally, to his, a deep furrow forming between his brows as ghostly fingers moved up to the black stone etched with a golden lotus blossom. Helios was shorter than him. "I didn't give you that," he said quietly, honey-yellow eyes flashing up to his before falling back to the clasp.

"The Pyrite pendant shattered," Mamoru explained, slowly for the benefit of their obviously uncomfortable ghostly guide, "the same night Usako became Princess Sailor Moon; you were exhausted all of last week, so if you don't remember it -"

"Princess Sailor - ?"

"It's because Rin changed the timeline," North interrupted, smugly finishing in a very different assurance than what Mamoru was going for. "Something in his arriving when he did pushed the Archons into acting before they intended to, and this is the result," he said, motioning to the other Kings in general. "Did we get kidnapped during your time?"

"Kidnapped?" Helios repeated incredulously, eyes opening wide.

West, his arms crossed in front of his chest, mused, "During their first attack we started out separated and had to divide our resources further to watch out for Rin; in their time they hadn't had to do that."

"So I wasn't taken," South continued.

"And we probably got enough out of your attacker to start figuring things out without the distraction of Rin's arrival and Mamoru's visions." North surmised. "Which means we never met Them and Mamoru never died, so Usagi-chan never used her Crystal they way she did and the Senshi never awakened."

"Mamoru died?!"

Figuring out the differences was an interesting study, but there were more pressing matters here - like saving this timeline. "It didn't stick," Mamoru deflected, waving off future-Helios's look of concern to redirect attention to the room below, "but I take it if we don't move quickly, that may not be the case for them." The mood in the room refocused, and with that renewed focus he turned back to Helios. "We came here to help," Mamoru stated, whether this is our direct future or not. "Tell us about Metallia."

Helios nodded, and then left the room, a trail of superheroes in his wake lead by Cardinal King. "I'll show you," the High Priest said, moving faster than before through crystalline corridors and up short staircases until the palace opened up for them again in an enormous room outfitted in various technical devices, the foremost of which was a giant screen that took up three multi-story facets of what must have been the crystalline tower they saw within the structure from a distance. Helios reached a bank of computers and called North over to press a series of buttons that his transparent fingers could not interact with.

Suddenly the screen lit up, showing a scene recorded from multiple angles: an army, marching on Crystal Tokyo, lead by a singular figure. The camera zoomed in on the leader as he spoke, his skin mottled green and black, flaming red hair standing up behind him and writhing as though truly on fire; brandishing a staff with an ugly, bulbous end, his voice boomed, "Child of the Moon Kingdom, your fate has come to claim you! Metallia is AWAKE, and We will reclaim the planet that was stolen from us!" and with a hiss and sweep of the staff, fire exploded outward, knocking through the buildings it struck and setting everything it touched ablaze. The images - all of them - shut down in smoke and static before others clicked on, showing the scene from farther away: the edges of the cone of flame had dissipated nearly a block away from where the leader stood, creating an arc of fire, and everything in between was leveled and blackened. Sirens blazed and people screamed a background cacophony to the gut-wrenching utter destruction one attack had done. The sound in the room cut off suddenly, but the image continued, zooming in yet again to Metallia and his army, but it was Helios who spoke:

"This was the first attack. It came without warning and entirely unprovoked." Metallia pointed, and his army of half-human creatures rushed forward into the destruction, spreading out throughout the city as their leader marched in steadily, glaring up, towards the Crystal Palace. "The Kings were dispatched immediately," he said, and a few smaller screens popped up, one a black-and-white map with colored markers diverging from the Crystal Palace, heading to surround the affected area. When the first reached the line of red dots, another screen lit up to show West King engaging with the army of monsters. "With its stated relationship to the Moon Kingdom, we tried to contact the Mau programs in Mare Serenitatis for information, but there was no response; through satellites, we later found that the old Moon Kingdom's palace had been destroyed," new images on screen, showing an alabaster palace in blackened ruins, and, beside him, Sailor Moon had turned away, holding on to Sailor Venus, who, even as she held Sailor Moon close, did not shut her eyes against the images. "The supercomputers that housed the programs remain unresponsive to remote attempts at rebooting their systems."

"Did you send someone up to make the attempt manually?" Mercury asked, her voice tight with control. Her eyes, too, were glued to the screen, but the way they shone made Mamoru avert his gaze.

Helios shook his head. "While technology has come a long way," he said, motioning to the control system surrounding the room, "it evolved differently to the technology developed on the Moon Kingdom; the only person capable of fixing it would have been you," he said, "a complication that was compounded by Metallia's strikes on space launch facilities." A series of new screens appeared atop the original battle's views, the windows popping up to show large explosions in other locales, else visual footage of blackened remains after what must have taken place. The screens disappeared.

"But while we may not know where it came from, there are things that we found out. First, that that is not Metallia." He pointed to another series of buttons and North kept up diligently. "Later on in this fight, with its numbers depleted by the Kings, they faced him and this happened:" a mobile camera from an elevated location zoomed in to see the four Kings approaching Metallia, with East and North holding off additional forces while West and South moved in; they were not in good shape, their grey uniforms torn and motions stiff with pain. They couldn't catch any words from the distance, but Helios supplied, "'Serve me and live.' They refused -" he cut himself off as the image took over for him. Metallia brought his scepter to bear, energy racing along its length to summon the flame that had taken out city blocks. Mamoru's breath caught in his throat, afraid he was about to see their ends - but, instead, it was Metallia who was ended. The black spots on his skin started to expand, fire escaping from within in an enormous blaze, and then Metallia was no more: he was a smoking husk of a human. The Kings on-screen released their hold on their capes and were fine, but as they moved in towards the remains a dark mass of smoke emerged and, as though sentient, rushed from the field. "'This isn't the end, Serenity,'" Helios dutifully repeated.

As the smoke disappeared, the army fled, but not before a pair stormed towards the Kings; the male raised his arm and the Kings flinched and dove for cover as something shot out and exploded on contact. West threw himself towards the staff Metallia had dropped, but the second enemy, running past, threw out a stream of water that rushed it farther afield and, diverging in her path, she scooped it up and ran off with it. "Staballoy and Tethys," Helios reported as the screens went dark and two large images appeared on screen - close-ups of the two figures, though with city backgrounds rather than the burnt field they had been in within that video. "He can fire armor-piercing munitions that self-sharpen on targets and explode on contact; she has control over water, and always appears when Metallia does."

"Tethys and Staballoy -" Mars broached, "The two we faced earlier mentioned them. They suggested the those two, and others - Ferrocerium - had killed the Kings." She didn't flinch from the word, "and maybe, us, too."

Helios turned back to the controls, North working as his hands, first calling up a third picture - 'Ferrocerium' - and continued his narrative. "Metallia's retreat pulled her army from the field, but after less than a day of peace, they began to return to wreak havoc and…" more screens opened to show an attack on a shopping district, only instead of killing everyone, the enemy - Ferrocerium - used his power to create flames surrounding them to stop anyone from escaping, then started to drain their energy - it was clear enough by the body language, the way they started to slump practically identical to attacks the Senshi had orchestrated. And, just like those attacks, the enemy did not stay to personally oversee them. They pointed at a random human, one that started to fight back, and dark mist surrounded them and one more, eclipsing them from view. When it cleared, two other half-human creatures were in their place. "Replenish their numbers."

"They're human," South breathed.

The scene continued to play, and Ferrocerium disappeared, leaving the new beings in charge as people gave out. East King, now in his Elysion armor, arrived on the scene too late, and while he punched one of the creatures through the wall of a building, the people stayed down. "Sometimes, if you knocked them out soon enough, they reverted to their original forms, but others that would be claimed by Metallia's forces and appear later in another fight. These attacks continued in areas all over the city, running everyone ragged for days. When Zoisite fell, we decided to try to reawaken the Senshi.

"King Endymion found their whereabouts and the Kings left to bring them in, but we lost Nephrite to Staballoy in the process, and even with all of them gathered, we didn't know where to begin - how to reawaken their inert abilities and spark their transformation.

"That's when Metallia struck again," Helios announced, turning to the screen, where new videos were pulled up through North's touch. An entirely new person lead the charge - a woman with flowing green hair and glowing green eyes, holding the same staff. Tethys was to her right. The video had sound - "Surrender this planet, Serenity! Submit yourself to me and face justice!" She pointed her staff and flame erupted from its end, but before long it crashed into a barrier and was thrown back, one tendril sparking to the camera and decommissioning it.

When another image picked up the fight, King Endymion was on the field, a staff of his own held out to face the threat, the Golden Crystal brought to bear at its tip. It felt odd to see "himself" on-screen when he had never been there, but the video was taken from far enough away that he couldn't really focus on his own features, just his attire: his grey Cardinal King uniform. While "he" fought off against Metallia, who wielded flame and burning plasma at once against him, West and South, also in their Elysion armor, stood by his side, breaking off only when her army separated from her in an attempt to flank them. "King Endymion went out to face it," Helios said as the Kings fought tooth and nail to keep the transformed humans at bay, "and soon became the new target." The video's sound was all crackling static as Metallia's whips of plasma cut through the air, held off by bursts of Golden Crystal energy; King Endymion transformed, armor from his past life overtaking his Heavenly Kings transformation, and his defensive abilities soon took the offensive. But then South King fell, and in the split-second distraction, Metallia directed another burst of fire at him. West burst in, knocking Endymion out of the way and took the brunt of the attack but was surrounded by golden energy as he hit the ground. Endymion, alone, spun and held up his other hand, directed at Metallia, and at that moment she brought down her staff and a fireball fell, crashing all around Endymion.

His body hadn't been in the room with everyone else's.

Metallia's second host burst into flames and the smoke emerged, rushing towards the explosion where Endymion had been, and the image erupted in static.

"The smoke is Metallia?" South asked, the lurch in his voice paralleling the one in Mamoru's stomach.

"Yes," Helios answered, the static clearing to show no sign of Endymion or Metallia.

"What was the static?" North demanded, and the video rewound to just before the static overcame it and slowed in the replay, Kaito working the controls as he glared up at the screen.

"The Silver Crystal," Helios replied, watching the screen as North worked. "Neo-Queen Serenity had been monitoring the situation with me, and when Endymion fell, her crystal reacted."

"So Endymion was pulled back to the Palace?" East's assumption was a little less than steady.

Helios shook his head, "It was not. Jadeite stabilized, parts of the city were reformed, the Senshi reawakened, but Endymion disappeared with Metallia."

North froze the image just before the static struck and enlarged the image - "There -" he pointed to a silver of pale, near-transparent gold barely seen through the flames and the smoke of Metallia - "That's from the Golden Crystal, isn't it? So he's still alive?"

"We believe so," Helios replied, though not as hopeful as Kaito's voice had been. "I left for Elysion immediately to fortify it, just in case… but he hasn't reappeared."

"Fortify Elysion?" East repeated, and while Mamoru appreciated it, they couldn't afford to avoid the possibility.

"It's tied to me," he supplied, "so if I started to turn as those others turned, Helios would know and could take steps to stop it, or warn Crystal Tokyo in case he couldn't."

Helios nodded curtly. "I've been praying nonstop, but so far there has been no indication that an attempt has been made to change his heart."

"Would his death negatively affect the planet?" Venus asked, and silence fell heavily, four sets of eyes glaring at her steadily.

At Helios's hesitation, he backed up her question, knowing it needed to be asked. If he was being used and there was no way out, he would want to be taken down before his body or his powers could be brought to bear against them. "Would it?"

The High Priest didn't look at them, staring at the screens as he replied, "The loss of the Golden Crystal would be a loss for Earth, but not one that would have an adverse effect on the planet or its current civilization."

Venus tilted her head up, accepting the response without further comment.

"If Metallia is after Serenity, turning Endymion could be the end of it," Mars stated instead. "Would she fight him if he appeared?"

"Losing him dealt a critical blow," Helios said quietly, "but she's been prepared for that possibility." He motioned, and North hit another series of buttons. "The Senshi were effective at first, but in strategic attacks following the King's disappearance, including the one on the refugee shelter within the Palace itself, and one against the young Prince, they, too, fell, and Neo-Queen Serenity is alone now in the protection of Crystal Tokyo."

"She held Metallia off in her third incarnation -" the images appeared - the exact ones from Mamoru's visions, only crystal clear: the city from above, equal in height to the top of the Crystal Palace, the position behind the woman with the streaming hair: Neo-Queen Serenity, Usako's future self. She stood on a platform cut into the structure, the Silver Crystal held out in front of her, streams of energy bursting out of it against an intensely bright figure that lashed out with lances and whips of glowing plasma, the heat so intense that the buildings far below were set aflame. The camera gave out and the image went dark. "This hosts' body was manipulated; multi-stories tall, it wielded energy we were able to positively identify as being most similar to magnetic bursts and solar storms from the Sun." The ghostly figure's jaw clenched, and after a tight breath, he continued, "Metallia burned through this host, too, before she could deal a blow to our Queen, but Serenity was left exhausted and heartsick, even more so when her son disappeared." He turned, finding Rin, and softly said, "But he did something heroic, and though luck or fate or something in between, he might have just saved his world." Rin hugged himself, and Jupiter, nearest him, put her hand on his back comfortingly. Helios went on, "He should go see his mother."

"I want to help," he replied quietly, and Jupiter bent down and picked him up.

"You've done a lot, kid," she said softly, "but I think the best thing you can do to help right now is helping me help you find your mom." She looked to Venus and Venus nodded, so she started to make for the exit. As she passed behind him, though, Rin reached out and took hold of the cape that draped from his left shoulder, and Mamoru reached back to take his hand.

"It'll be okay," he said, encouraging him, "You did all this to help her, right? You should show her you're okay."

"I'll go -" Sailor Moon started, but Helios cleared his throat to interrupt her, Mercury turning to look at her, too, and Usako stopped, diverting, "catch up with you later, okay, Rin?" She smiled at him, and he nodded, releasing his hold on Mamoru's cape, and Jupiter led him out of the room, wherein he asked to be put down and led her away. Usako watched him go, and her question was answered without having to ask:

"It could be dangerous to have two Silver Crystals in one place," Helios said, "the energy may end up resonating."

Mercury added, "and we're unsure of time travel's effects on people effectively being in two places at once; I'd prefer we keep some distance between ourselves and our future selves." Helios nodded, agreeing with her, and there was a consensus.

"Was that the most recent attack by Metallia?" West stated, redirecting to the problem at hand. Helios nodded, and he continued, "So she gave up on possessing Endymion, then, and moved on to another?"

"We bel-" Helios stopped, corrected himself, "I believe so."

"A new host…" North trailed off, and started pressing buttons, bringing many images on the screen at once, green eyes flashing between them. Mamoru watched, and as he saw their fight - or flee - race backward, he understood what North intended, watching the other screens work in reverse, keeping an eye out for any sudden appearances the way the Senshi had appeared behind them on the rooftop. He took a few steps forward to better see, standing beside West and his-Helios as North explained, "Sailor Pluto was defeated before we found her in her dimension by something that had not come with the enemies that chased Rin; Pluto said she had found a new host, one from our time -"

Human Helios sucked in a breath and turned to the screens, searching with them. North had found the timestamp when they had suddenly appeared on the rooftop and slowed the playback down, unsure of how much earlier the new opponent had arrived.

"It was a Space-Time door, right?" South asked, "So there's no telling what space it'd appear in, it could be clear across -"

"There." Mars stated, and North hit pause before following her finger, then hit play, watching something small pop into place. It looked no bigger than a bird, but it did seem to suddenly appear? North reversed, enlarged the image so it took up more screen space, hit play and -

"Beryl?!"

Even with Helios flying higher to be even with her image, she was there, clear as day: Beryl. The camera caught her from mostly from behind, unable to see her face beyond the curve of her cheek, but there was no mistaking her; her fairy-wings beat to keep her elevated as she surveyed the city, her mouth moved, but there was no one there to talk to - she nodded, and flew off, but North froze the frame.

"Beryl is the new host?" South voiced quietly.

East shook his head, squinting as he approached the screen, "She wouldn't - there's no way -"

"It's her," West confirmed heavily.

"But why?" North asked, reversing to see her appear again, "And how?! She was in Elysion, wasn't she?"

Mamoru could scarcely believe it, but it was her, and she was there. "She disappeared the same night you did," he reported for North's benefit but added nothing else; he had nothing else to add. Why would she join Metallia? She wasn't the kind to get into something without doing her research - ...but then she had acted quickly without them in Elysion, making her own plans… She wouldn't change sides. There was no way.

"Metallia's army changes humans into one of them," South mused, crossing his arms as he looked up at the screen. "If Metallia came across Beryl, it might have just… taken her. She said she didn't have a soul anymore, so it would have been easy to do, wouldn't it? To brainwash her, like Diana did to Usagi-chan?"

Like Diana had done? He couldn't help but be reminded of that fight - of dodging Jewel Tiara's attacks as Diana laughed, of the way Usako's eyes had been so empty... Someone took his hand and he started out of the memory, turning to find her there, her fingers intertwined with his. "Then it's not permanent," she said without an ounce of doubt. "With Mamo-chan reminding me of who I really was, I managed to break through her control. Beryl will, too. We just have to remind her of who she is, and she'll come back to our side." He squeezed her hand and she squeezed back, tilting her head to look up at him with a determined smile, and he resisted the urge to kiss her; she said exactly what they needed to hear, and her optimism kept him thinking forward instead of stewing in what could happen if nothing changed. He'd just keep pushing forward, with her.

"Okay then, it's settled!" East declared, punching a fist into his other palm, "We find her and knock some sense into her before it's too late!"

"Isn't it already too late?" Mars asked, drawing everyone's attention. She continued calmly, "Pluto was defeated by her; Metallia may already be completely in control."

"Then she'll take control back," East shrugged his shoulders. "She's annoying in how stubborn she is. Metallia got her when she was alone and vulnerable - in front of an audience cheering her on, Beryl'll kick her to the curb, no question."

The High Priest didn't look so convinced. "Beryl's magical prowess will make her a dangerous host; if Metallia uses her in battle, her form may not give out as quickly as the other hosts, if it gives out at all. It survived the fall of the Golden Age, channeling dark powers of the sun may not cause it to be destroyed."

"Then we change her back or take her out," West stated heavily, and Mamoru felt his friend's strain without having to initiate contact. "Speed up the video," he commanded, and North obeyed, "let's see where she goes."

-A/N-

Sorry this chapter was released a little later in the day than anticipated! I was in a minor car accident on Friday while on an away trip with the school and when I woke up today my body was like "listen, I held back b/c you were in charge of children, but NOT ANYMORE D" and so i slept more XD

I'll go back and add in italics and bolding as anticipated later! (sometimes it lets me copy/paste from docs and keep, but not this time u_u)


	4. Complications

It wasn't the best of plans, but they didn't have much of a choice: if Metallia was using Beryl as a new host, they had to break that connection before Metallia tried to strike the Crystal Palace again. At the same time, Metallia's henchmen were still attacking Crystal Tokyo, stealing energy and turning innocent people into creatures to further fill the army's ranks - meaning the timing of the next big attack could be sooner rather than later, and Neo-Queen Serenity wasn't fully recovered yet to defend against something like that. So, they had to find Beryl _and_ stop the attacks, both of which seemed like an impossibility, especially considering the henchmen they'd be fighting had knocked their future selves into comas.

Their only consolation was in that _they_ had the blessings of the Shitennou, whereas their future selves had _not,_ so the enemies would not be expecting such a significant change, _and, _beyond that, the Senshi were _recently_ awakened from their last transformations, so they wouldn't be as rusty as they might have been in this time. … assuming they had been rusty. And they had Cardinal King and Princess Sailor Moon with them, which…

Mamoru _had_ to be there. He knew Beryl, he had helped Jewel Tiara snap out of it, he was experienced in fighting and could heal his teammates. He would be a target, but Usako would make a bigger one. Metallia was seeking revenge against _Serenity,_ who was kept safe from her agents within the Crystal Palace; what would they do if they recognized her as being the same person in a younger form? Would they… but she wouldn't accept the idea of staying behind, and her attack had been what finished off the enemy in the Time Door dimension; they needed her, too.

It had taken some shuffling to figure out groups; the direction Beryl had taken was towards the first attack site, completely devoid of life, so they had to split into at least two teams if they were going to put a stop to the attacks on the surviving population and lead them back to the Crystal Palace. Despite the attack made by a 'citizen' before, he agreed with Usako in reopening the Palace to use as a shelter; now that they knew what could happen, they could figure out a screening process - the computer system was advanced enough to do practically anything, so scanning people as they approached for any sign of being a _covert monster_ shouldn't be too difficult. As the High Priest led Mercury through the configuration, West called a meeting of the Kings in the nearby library; Princess Sailor Moon tagged along, so Venus accompanied them, too, as Mars made to reconvene with Jupiter and locate communicators for the mission.

The library meeting was more a quick summit to summarize what they knew about their new abilities and items and what they did _not_ know, and then attempt to use whatever the library had on the Four Heavenly Kings to put the remaining pieces together; North quickly found a computer terminal and started typing immediately, making quick work of figuring out what shortcuts he could use to make the task faster.

"We've got upgraded armor we can call upon and new weapons that make use of an elemental affinity; South, were you granted any additional items or abilities?"

Yuu shook his head. "Just the halberd," he reported, "nothing more."

"Add in freaky insider information or whatever," East piped up, holding up one finger for each of the three lines of the defense he offered when practically _everyone_ in the room groaned at him, "He knew we could contact Mamoru from the spaceship - or knew we could straight up _teleport_ to him. He knew we could set up that barrier, and he knew we could give him our power at the end, there, too. _And,"_ he added, "he could have a heightened sense of _smell."_

"_Nero,"_ Yuu admonished in a complaint, but Mamoru was glad for what Nero had offered - he hadn't known about _any_ of that - that it had been Yuu who initiated the teleport, at least, though he had known he initiated the barrier. He hadn't known about the power, either.

"Zochoten, Lord of the South: Catalyst of Spiritual Growth, Lord Who Expands," North read out from the screen, then turned, "Can you… grow?"

"Like the Hulk?!"

Yuu rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, "Not that I know of."

"It'd be cool, though."

"East -" West cut in to redirect Nero to where he intended, "Items or abilities?"

"Trident that can pull rock up to meet it," Nero stated, holding out his hand for the long black weapon to appear and immediately disappear, "a sword," he said, the implement appearing and disappearing, "and whatever this is." He held his hands a different way, and an instrument appeared - something old, like a guitar but with a flat top and a cutout design rather than a hole into the interior wooden chamber. Nero examined it, "I think he called it a lute? An _enchanting_ lute?"

Kaito spoke from the computer, "Jikokuten, Lord of the East: Guardian of the Nation, Lord who Upholds the Realm." He spun in the chair to look at the lute before putting typing again. "The lute could be… there are some stories about it being able to put people to sleep? Or convert them."

"A brainwashing instrument of _good_? Like the pied piper?"

West held up a hand to stop him, "You can figure that out when you're fighting with the Sailor Guardians to stop the attacks and bring people back to the Palace."

East sobered and nodded, the lute disappearing. "Upholding the Realm and all," he commented and fell back into a seat, silent. Mamoru didn't like the idea of them splitting up, either, but they didn't have a choice if they wanted to succeed.

"I've got a gem that can let me see the truth in things," West announced, pulling the blue stone he had produced earlier on the rooftop back in Tokyo from a pouch on his belt. "I've also got a scroll and a writing brush, but without practice in calligraphy, I'm not sure how much use they'll be."

"Koumokuten, Lord of the West," Kaito supplied, "Punisher of Evil, Seeker of Enlightenment, Lord who Sees All. I think you're right about the calligraphy, but we can figure that out when all this is over." He typed a little more before turning around to share his own. "I have a spear that can freeze a target on contact, enhanced hearing, and this," he said, and opened his hand for a small pagoda to appear on his palm. "I was blessed by Tamonten, Lord of the North, Protector of the Righteous, Patron of Warriors, and Lord who Hears All. If this information is correct, this little thing can erase evil influences from otherwise innocent souls when it's opened."

Lord who hears all? Mamoru smiled; it explained how he knew when to duck earlier, and for someone who wanted to run a newspaper it could be _very_ useful, patron of warriors or not. Protector of the righteous, for Khalid, too; it fit. Nero's, too - in his own way. And Yuu's… the catalyst of spiritual growth?

"The army -" Yuu breathed, straightening up from his lean against bookshelves. "You could cleanse them?" Catalyst or no, he had a pretty strong moral center, when he wasn't angling to win an argument.

"I think," Kaito said, backtracking, the miniature building disappearing. "Maybe."

But Yuu nodded against the hesitation, his voice assuring enough as to erase any question of the possibility from Mamoru's mind, if not anyone else's, "You can. You should go with them - you can save them before it's too late."

West nodded, "North and East with them; South, Cardinal and I will look for Beryl -"

"Mamoru?" East interrupted suddenly, though he had not stood; rather, his elbows were rested on his spread knees, his gloved hands clasped and hanging in the air. He stared down at his hands. "Did you get the armor upgrade?"

"I don't think so," he replied honestly, not wanting to hide anything about powersets from them. Some things that the Lord of the Center had said he would keep quiet for now, like about what's coming for them, but nothing that could lead to misunderstandings over expectations. "Taishakuten brought me back to life and let me transform, but he didn't mention any other abilities or skills -"

"Taishakuten, Lord of the Center," Kaito read aloud, "Commander of the Four Heavenly Kings, Defender of the Heavenly Kings and Humanity against all that is Evil -"

"His title isn't mine to have," Mamoru interrupted, recalling the spirit's words clearly, and not wanting to give them any ideas of grandeur that he didn't have. "I am to keep my title of King of the Cardinal Rose and retain my abilities, but he granted me nothing of his - just my life, and my ability to help protect everyone."

Kaito hummed in a way that suggested he wasn't convinced and turned back to the computer.

"So no armor," East repeated, for clarity.

"He wore robes," Mamoru replied definitively.

East nodded, pushed himself to his feet, and strode over to South, starting a quiet conversation and Mamoru wasn't exactly _thrilled_ to see happening. He could watch his own back, and he could watch theirs, and he didn't like being thought of as a liability or someone that needed to be especially watched.

"Well," North said, standing from the computer to clap him on the shoulder, leading him out of the room behind West. "If you start to shoot lighting, or get a diamond mace that gives you foresight and immense power, ask me more."

East was paired with Mercury, Venus, and Princess Sailor Moon; North went with Mars and Jupiter. Each of them had use of a radio that fit into their right ear, activated by touch or verbal command, with semi-private channels so as not to overwhelm everyone with chatter. Everything streamed through the palace, where Helios coordinated things with the "ghost" of his future self. Using cameras, they'd be able to warn the teams of incoming threats and coordinate support should the need arise. Mamoru felt tentatively confident in that Mercury's computer and Mars's psychic abilities would warn them before Helios had to.

Standing just inside the door of the Crystal Palace, they wished each other luck, gave final in-person instructions and reminders, and prepared to leave. He trusted Khalid would take care of things for his team as, for those final minutes of preparation, his arms were full. Princess Sailor Moon held him tight; standing on her tiptoes with her arms wrapped around his shoulders, he was content to hold her for as long as she held him, her face buried in his neck and his heart in her hands. If he could have stopped time, he would have, even if just for another second of being with her like this, where it felt like just the two of them without anything to worry about. Her rhythmic breathing and the warmth of her against him comforted him like nothing else, though as he closed his eyes in her embrace he felt like he could easily fall asleep. And even though thinking about _why_ he was so tired could have been terrifying in retrospect, he felt none of that distress within her embrace… but with a gentle call of his name it was over and she released him, the heels of her boots touching down on the crystalline floor with a sharp _click _as she took a step back, her hands trailing down his arms to clasp his hands. She smiled at him and heart thumped in his chest, demanding he _do something,_ but East was suddenly there and her hands were gone from his.

"Don't worry, _Mamo-chan,"_ he teased, but while he continued in a teasing tone, the look Nero gave him as he spoke was a promise: "Usagi-chan is safe with me."

"She'd _better be,_" South quipped, fiddling with his communicator with a frown.

"_Please,"_ East shot back, wrapping an arm around Usako's shoulders to lightly lead her towards the door, "Me, Mercury, Venus, _and_ Princess Sailor Moon? These future freaks don't know what's about to hit them. Prepare to keep score, _Nerd,"_ he called, challenging North.

The blond rolled his eyes and let out a long-suffering sigh, pulling an elastic out from between his teeth as he retied his hair to keep it tighter to the back of his neck. He remarked flatly, "With as much as you showboat, we'll triple your numbers in half the time. Remember: first priority is to get the people back here, _second_ is to defeat enemies. And don't do -" he cut himself off and changed conversational targets to Mercury, "Don't let him lead you into doing something stupid."

Mercury looked up at East with a hint of concern, and East opened his mouth to protest, but Jupiter clapped North on the back and lead him towards the door, saying, "With Venus on their team, there's no chance he'll lead them astray."

And, with that, the citizen recovery teams were gone; he returned the waves of goodbye, and as they disappeared he silently wished for their safe return. Khalid ran through the directions with them one last time, and then they, too, left, though at a run and in a different direction. Their feet ate through the city streets; while they preferred rooftops, the area of the city they ran towards was the one hit by the original fireball, and, with their prior experience with one of those scorched roofs, they decided to keep to ground level and open their senses to any sign of attack. When Beryl appeared on the recording and flew off she was hesitant and slow; while there was a chance she was long gone from the city, their cameras had lost her before she entered the blackened debris field, so there was also a chance she was still here. If Metallia was in full control it would have no reason to hesitate - it'd head right back to its base and start resting up, wouldn't it? So maybe Beryl had already wrested back control and just didn't know where to go? Else she was fighting it and could use the backup.

West slowed, Khalid holding up his arm to indicate they had arrived at the location where Beryl had last been seen, and Mamoru stopped, quietly catching his breath as he used his eyes and ears to pick up any indication that their fairy friend was still there. Psychometry would do him no good in this; Beryl had exchanged her soul to stay alive when the Golden Crystal had reset things, so she never showed up for him in his scans; they would first rely on standard senses and West's blue gem and hope the latter gave them more information than the former. The buildings surrounding them were somewhere between fine, scorched, and completely melted, creating long and disturbing shadows in the light of the setting sun wherein nothing beyond the lengthening shadows and the three of them moved.

"Beryl!" South cried, both a call to her and an exclamation for them and Mamoru turned quickly to see where he looked - "Wait!"South called, running between buildings towards the east, chasing the last light of day, and Mamoru ran after him -

"_South!"_ West shouted in warning, and South pivoted in response, his forward foot sliding sideways as he spun to face north. He called up his halberd just in time for another weapon to come crashing down onto it. Mamoru jumped, his foot catching the side of the building to the south, and as he flew past them he threw a rose to distract their new opponent. Their enemy - a woman who looked only barely older than they - had silver hair separated into pigtails, the ends dyed deep red that grazed the top of her shoulders and a new cut across one cheek. She growled, blue eyes glaring into him, her grin immediately replaced with a scowl the moment his rose had sliced her, and she grunted and feinted back only to rush forward again to clang her polearm against the pole of South's halberd.

"_Alnico!"_ Helios warned through their communicator, "_She can magnetize metals - work her out into the open!"_

Mamoru fixed his stance, faced his palm towards her, and sent out a burst of golden crystal energy to knock her back towards West and the more open street they had come from, but the moment she staggered back a few steps from the blow, South whirled his instrument around and tried to take her feet out from under her with the smaller pointed end. She tried to hop away from it, but her boots caught and she went down. In a continuance of the whirling motion, South had the ax-head of his weapon at her throat, and as she looked up at him, wide-eyed, he smoothly stepped closer to keep the upper hand. "Surrender," he ordered, his voice sharp-edged, "and we can help you."

She huffed a laugh, the shock moving through her, and tilted her head so that the edge of his blade barely touched the skin of her neck. Her expression - one of disdain-filled amusement, apathetic towards the danger posed to her - immediately changed and she twitched away from the halberd, a thin line of blood where the blade had been. The cut was shallow but reddening quickly, but it didn't seem life-threatening, so Mamoru stayed where he was, catching West's eyes on the other side of the engagement. South hadn't moved to cause any harm, and as she revealed the injury to him he kept still, moving only to repeat "Surrender."

She had no choice; her delay was wasting precious time. Mamoru looked back over his shoulder, towards where Yuu had been leading them, looking for any sign of the fairy in the fading light, and when he did, things erupted behind him. He turned, his arms raising instinctively to the sudden burst of motion as Alnico twisted and slammed her hands onto either side of the broad side of South's Halberd and kicked out at his feet simultaneously; he had to adjust, and as he did, she managed to push the head of the halberd aside to free her head and toss it; impossibly, it was yanked from South's grip and flew to stick to the wall of the nearest building. She continued her spinning motion, grabbed her polearm, and used it to get back to her feet before whipping it around to strike at South - he jumped back and Mamoru summoned and threw another rose, cutting into her upper arm to impede her -

"_Endymion?"_

He froze, her voice right behind him, and spun to face it - "Beryl?!" - but no one was there -

"**It's about time!"** Alnico complained snippily and he turned back to see fire lighting the shadows, as, beyond South, West engaged with the orange-haired man he recognized from the videos: Ferrocerium. Despite an attempt to lead his opponent back towards the open street, through explosions of fire sparked from Ferrocerium's weapon, West was being pushed towards them, finally jumping over Alnico to be by their sides as Alnico reached up to touch her neck - now swollen and bleeding. She grimaced and, with her taller ally by her side, renewed her attack, swinging her polearm around and South evaded, backing towards Mamoru.

With a touch and slight pull to each of their shoulders, West indicated a retreat, and they turned and ran for the clear end of the alley to find more room to face them. A burst of fresh air accompanied their escape from the narrow passage and they immediately spread out to face the threat; Mamoru stayed where he was, feet planted, and, squinting into the long shadows that steadily engulfed the alley, shot another burst of energy at the pair as they neared, knocking them further back into the passage before jumping back, giving his teammates better warning for when they surfaced.

"Did you see her?!" West called, his silver trident in one hand and scimitar in the other.

South, his right hand positioned towards the alley, was concentrating; his eyes flew open as the halberd Alnico had stuck to a wall shot through the air towards him. Landing in his grip as though it wanted to be there, he replied, "Yes. She's here!"

The pair burst out of the alley at running jumps, immediately moving in to engage in close combat, and he quickly summoned his sword to block Ferrocerium as the orange haired opponent lunged towards him. His hand solid against the flat of his blade, his enemy's weight crashed down against him and the air immediately exploded in his face. He flinched and grunted against it but held, pushing to redirect his opponent's weight and throw him off; he managed to sidestep and slip aside as the man crashed through. Slinging his sword aside to free his hand for an energy burst, he fired golden light after the quick-stepping form of Ferrocerium, knocking him off balance, and then the King of the South was there, decked in the upgraded armor he had worn on the rooftop in Tokyo: a black metal breastplate that hugged close to his body ending in tassets that followed the outside of his legs to his knees, black metallic boots, greaves, and forearm guards protecting his limbs; beneath all a red and gold dressing, loose pants, and long sleeves that moved like flames around his arms, following his movements but never interfering. A black helmet hid his blond hair, and a giant chakram of flame hovered behind him as he rushed in to take Mamoru's place against Ferrocerium, striking forward with his halberd to knock their enemy off balance. Ferrocerium struck the halberd and flame exploded, but South didn't react to it, pushing forward as though it had no effect to press his attack - an effect of Zochoten's armor?

Mamoru spun to find and support West; with his powerset being tied to metals, fighting against an opponent that could magnetize any metallic object she touched could prove difficult; however, as he pivoted towards the dueling pair, it was apparent his assistance was welcome but not necessary: West fought unarmed, dodging Alnico's attacks smoothly. As he stopped to summon a rose to throw as another distraction, Khalid reached for Alnico's polearm as it passed near his light blue lined half-cape, grabbed it, and pulled it to send her clumsily running forward, starting to trip over her own feet; he followed it with a tap to her back to send her sprawling and Mamoru prepared to throw the rose as she started back up to give Khalid another opportunity -

"_Endymion?"_

He twitched, mis-throwing the rose to glance her rather than strike Alnico full-on, and spun towards the remaining sunlight to see a tiny figure barely breaking a silhouette against the setting sun. He had recognized her voice before, and now - "Beryl!" he called, first in answer and then again in warning - "_Beryl!"_ \- as a figure detached itself from the building nearest her and cast a long shadow as it sprinted across the distance towards her. Blinking furiously to see through the bright light against the burning after-image of the sun, he ran to defend her, blindly throwing another rose towards the recalled path of the shadowy figure, hoping it would be enough to redirect its attention to him, at least long enough to let Beryl escape -

A blast struck him, sent him flying - he hit the pavement in a wet mess and rolled; groaning, he pushed himself onto his hands and knees and recalibrated, able to see Beryl apart from the sun now and the two figures that stood too near just beyond her, their stances offensive - with a grunt of effort he was back on his feet and running for her, a rose turning into his sword in his hand as he yelled, calling for them to get away from her, trying to refocus their attention on him. Beryl was a sorceress - everyone said that, but while he had faint memories of some acts from their past lives, in the present he hadn't seen anything like that from her. She could light candles. She could conjure tiny illusions to bait Nero. She was good with planning and timing, but she wasn't a fighter! And if she was holding off this Metallia thing, she didn't need to be afraid for her own safety on top of all that.

It worked - the pair of them focused on him, and as he threw out a burst of energy and dodged to the other side to both attack and avoid an attack, he tried to form a plan. Solder, the man with the dripping metallic features from earlier that day, had been struck by his energy attack and fell back, but Tethys - the tall feminine creature in blue with a mask for a face - simply readjusted and fired at him again. He jumped, aiming for the top of a lamp post, and conjured and threw another rose to distract them as he landed, checked his angle, took a breath and released it as he kicked himself off the perch with greater speed, sword pulled back, ready to be thrust towards Metallia's most loyal subject -

But she whipped around to see him, long blue hair fanning out behind her, and the eyes behind the mask glowed blue and, not even halfway through the distance, he slowed, the world around him suddenly denser, his vision compromised as the world seemed to shift, and as he realized what had happened he struggled not to gasp for breath. He stabbed forward with his sword, the movement slowed through the water, but the tip did not reach the sphere's perimeter. He dropped it, flattened his hands and fired, but the energy just rippled through the barrier, missing Tethys altogether, and while he had been thrown backward with the blast, the water pushed him back towards the center, fighting his every move. His chest burned. His earpiece crackled and Helios started talking in his ear, telling him to stay calm, that the others were coming -

His attention, though, was not on Helios, or West or South as they fought off their attackers to come to his aide. It wasn't on how stupid he had been to take on Tethys without knowing what she could do, or on Solder to keep an eye on what he was building. It was on Beryl. On how she flew _towards_ Tethys, rather than taking the opportunity to escape. How she pulled hard on a lock of Tethys's hair, pointed to him, her voice garbled in his ears through the prison of water surrounding him. Tethys answered and Beryl flew still before she separated herself from the mask-faced creature, but rather than fly away, or going to help West, she hovered in space, and, enveloped in a deep red light, started to _grow._ From centimeters tall with dragonfly-like fairy wings, she became taller, the wings disappearing as her height increased to a meter and more, and soon her sandaled feet touched down on solid ground, as tall as the blue-haired creature beside her - as tall as she had been before the battle in Elysion. Pale hands outstretched towards him and the bubble surrounding him popped, water crashing to the ground all around him, restoring his hearing and letting him breathe, but he remained suspended in midair and he found he couldn't move: the water had slowed his motion, but now his limbs were completely paralyzed. Panic slowly edged its way in, creeping from the depths of his stomach - what was Beryl doing? She had saved him, hadn't she?

"We should leave," Tethys said, her arm across her chest in a salute as she tilted at the waist towards Beryl. Beryl barely glanced at her, showing neither malice nor acceptance, though she kept her arms out in front of her, controlling him.

"I can't move," he carefully admitted, forcing the words out through stiff lips and clenched jaw; did she realize that?

"_Mamoru?!"_ Helios's voice called in his ear.

His heart skipped a beat as right before his eyes Beryl's irises changed color, orange-red taking over from the bottom up, chasing away the deep purple-grey color they had held in the past. He couldn't read her expression, her features smooth, until suddenly her dark brows knitted and her lips pouted in apology. His heart hammered in his chest - what was she going to do? - and then a scepter appeared between Beryl's hands and the orb in the center pulsated with light. As Beryl, Tethys and Solder resonated with the pulsations of the light, his body erupted in pins and needles, his breath leaving him, and just as a weapon hurled towards Beryl and Tethys, everything went black.


	5. Making Right or Taking Revenge? RedBeryl

His head felt like it would split open at any moment. His lungs burned, his muscles ached, and when he blinked awake it was like his eyes hadn't opened, the darkness surrounding him so deep he couldn't see his hand in front of his face. As his vision adjusted he sat up and two things became apparent: one, he was on a bed, which made him assume he was in a bedroom and had been sleeping, thus the lack of light. Two: he wasn't wearing his Kings' uniform, which meant he had detransformed, and in the unfamiliar place he wished he hadn't. That he wasn't wearing the pajamas he had been in when this "day" started too many hours ago, either, was a little more disconcerting. If he had been left to sleep the attack off, why would he be changed out of his sleepwear and into a tight pair of pants? The shirt, too - long sleeved and made of something silky, it could _almost_ be substituted as nightshirt if not that the top few buttons were unbuttoned but the shirttail was tucked in and the sleeves were rolled to his elbows. He ran his hands through his hair gingerly and swung his feet off the edge of the bed. Cold floor biting through his socks, he looked down, his eyesight starting to catch enough starlight from what could have been a window directly across from where he sat on the bed to make out a pair of shoes laid out for him. The ground was nonreflective, and considering their hosts' palace was made entirely of Crystal, the worry that continued to build felt valid, even as he fought to keep it under control. As he slipped into the offered shoes he lightly pressed his hand to the ground and sent out energy, using psylocation to locate his friends or get a look around, only…

Only nothing happened.

He swallowed, got up and knelt down, putting both hands flat on the floor, and tried again, paying close attention to his actions to avoid a second mistake. He could feel the Golden Crystal's energy within him, could direct it to the palms of his hands; he visualized what he wanted and released the shockwave, but this time it was definitive: he sent out the energy and nothing happened. There was no return on lifeforms.

Wherever he was, he was completely alone.

So when a door opened behind him, spreading a column of soft light across the room, he tensed and quickly stood, turning tightly towards it, and, blinking in the sudden light, he saw that light reflecting off his pendant lying on the mattress near his body's indentation on the blankets. He reached out and grabbed it, hands wrapping around the smooth black stone, its chain dangling out of his fist as he straightened, and looked towards the door, waiting for whatever had opened it to show itself. A construct, maybe? Like those that the Archons had employed? They didn't have any souls, so they had never shown up in his searches; these could be the same.

Instead, the door opened wider to admit a silhouette that was vaguely familiar, the long hair and dress all he could make out until she reached inside and waved her hand beside the wall; the baseboards and headboards of the room suddenly snaked alight up in the same soft orange-red light of the outer hall, illuminating the large room's dimensions in its entirety, including some alcoves and shadow art. The walls were black with an occasional diamond-like shine: it was definitely not the Crystal Palace.

"Endymion!" Beryl breathed excitedly as she entered, her person practically radiating exhilaration as she moved into the room and around the massive bed to stand even with him, her newly-orange eyes moving from him to the room-wide window and then back to him, a blush creeping into her cheeks as she looked him up and down and he immediately felt uncomfortable. "That suits you," she complemented with odd intonation, her hands clasping behind her back as she meandered closer to the window, her eyes never straying too long from him. She twirled to face him with her back to the glass, her dress fanning out around her, and cocked her head as she examined him. "I'm glad you're awake; we were worried. There had been a complication when we first relocated you, but we figured things out and managed to get you here; apparently, and thankfully, before it was too late."

He tried to keep his voice neutral, almost interested as he spoke, not quite sure what was going on with her in regards to Metallia. "Complications?" he prompted, and she shook her head, long black hair waving around her as she attempted to mollify him.

"People aren't meant to be in two places at the same time," she said, "Once we realized that the duality was causing the problem, it was easy enough to fix."

Duality? … Mercury's warning to Usagi came to mind and a few things fell into place. They must have originally taken him to where they were holding King Endymion; his arrival had caused problems. But there was, maybe, still a chance. "We?" he asked, though he knew the chances of her answering with the Kings were slim to none.

"Hmm?" she hummed instead, as though she hadn't understood, and approached him; he tensed, but she stepped past him, turned, and fell backward on the bed beside him. She smiled up at him, at first stretching her arms out above her head, but then moving to lace her fingers atop the pale fabric of her outer gown across her stomach. "Isn't it wonderful?" she asked, smiling fondly up at the ceiling. He had to figure out how far gone she was, and where he was, and how close they were to Metallia's next attack. He swallowed - he'd need to be careful. She glanced at him, her smile turning a little harder as she nodded her chin up to the ceiling and, to placate her, he looked up. The surface was reflective but in an almost pebbled texture, like frozen water droplets, but in it, he saw her stretched out across the bed in a hazy image. His stomach dropped uncomfortably and his guard immediately went up. Her reflection moved and he looked back to her, his expression carefully guarded as she smiled over at him, propped up on her elbows. "You don't have to worry," she said, her smile fading, misreading him. "Earth will be fine - _everything's_ going to be okay now."

"How so?" he asked carefully, again hoping she would make an announcement about how she had captured Metallia, or figured out a way to seal it or disperse it - anything but -

"Metallia and I are going to fix everything," she confidently replied, her tone soft and meant to be soothing, though its content was anything but.

"Where is Metallia now?" he asked, glancing back towards the door behind her; if it were separated from her, he could try to explain things, have her fight its control… though she did not seem under any control as it were. If he could share what they had found, Beryl would understand what was going on and could help them figure out how to trap it.

Beryl was less confident in her reply, suspicion creeping into her tone, "Sleeping; going back for me took a lot out of her and she has to rest before the next phase. Why?"

"Beryl," he said, trying to be gentle as he sat down beside her, speaking quietly but directly, "Do you know what she has been doing to Earth? What her next phase _is?"_

She sat up completely, radiating anger and annoyance and refusing to meet his gaze as she spat, "What _she_ has been doing is _freeing_ it. She was supposed to watch over Earth, but instead, _they_ came and sealed her away - sent her _here, _took over her Kingdom, corrupted her duties to create their own seat of power -" she clenched her hands into fists in her dress and suddenly stood. He stood back as she stormed around the bed, towards the door, and then he quickly moved to follow her, but she stopped dead in the doorway. "Soon, you'll be free of its influence, Endymion, and you'll see the truth of things. Until then, you'll be safe here."

"Beryl -" he started, but she stepped out and shut the door in his face. He reached for the handle to pull it back open, only to find there _was_ no handle. He pressed against it, pushed it - "_Beryl!"_ He was trapped?! He pounded his fist on the door once, called calmly but firmly, "Open the door, Beryl. We need to talk about what's going on." But there was no response. He stepped back, looked down the stretches of wall and moved towards the alcoves outlined in the low perimeter lights, "Something's happening and you _need to know_ about it!" he called, attempting to appeal to her curiosity, keeping the statement vague enough to perhaps be taken as him trying to help her cause, if she wasn't accepting anything else. There was still no response, and his hands curled into fists at his side, his mouth forming a tight line as he accepted she had left him there. The alcoves proved to be sitting areas and a powder room, completely without access to any other part of the structure, so he paced back to the door, held out his hand, and concentrated. The energy tingled as it built, and when he deemed it should be enough to blow the door apart he released it. A burst of golden light flooded outward, struck the door, and… nothing happened.

Frowning in frustration he moved to touch the space where his shot had landed and found it warm to the touch, but it hadn't weakened the door in the least. He'd need more power - or heightened strength. Standing back, thinking of the pendant in his left palm he calmed his mind, thinking only of his transformation, a process that he had used so often within the last span of time it was second nature - only… nothing happened. He didn't give up; it was a new pendant, maybe he was supposed to attune to it or something - with the Pyrite pendant he used to have to call words of power to activate his transformation in the beginning, maybe it was the same with this focus. 'Pyrite Power' wouldn't work, but -

"Golden Power, Transform!" … nothing happened. It didn't feel right. Maybe - "Earth Crystal Power, Transform!" The phrase felt better, _right, _even, but as warmth spread from his heart and through his body from there, it disappeared as quickly as it had appeared and he was there, still, in the blue silk shirt and tight black pants. Another phrase? He had Earth's crystal, right? He thrust the pendant enclosed in his fist above his head and tried "Earth Power, Transform!" … "Earth Crystal Power, Transform!" he tried again… What had Usako used?! "Earth Prince Power, Transform!" … "Pyrite Power, Transform!" "Elysion Power, Transform!" ?! The pendant - "Golden Lotus, Transform!" maybe?! But still, nothing. Swallowing past the tightness in his chest, pushing down the panic in favor of more useful things, he opened his hand and looked at the smooth stone etched with the golden flower, trying to unlock its secret by inspection, through his hands and his mind and his heart, knowing that every second that passed was time he didn't have to waste. He had to talk sense into Beryl and stop Metallia before it was too late - he didn't have time to figure out a new transformation process. He had made a promise to Helios, but he would understand. Slipping the chain around his neck, he focused instead on not becoming King of the Cardinal Rose, but rather upon the attire of his past life, and the unfiltered use of the Golden Crystal's power that that form brought. Again his chest grew warm, energy radiating out from his heart - but, just like before, the energy left through his feet. He tried again, chest growing hotter and hotter with each attempt, and each attempt ended the same.

Finally he had to give up. Frustration and fear fighting for control, Mamoru pushed his emotions back, wiped the sweat from his brow and breathed deep and even as he looked at the room again. He had to be productive. The window! It didn't look to be the type that opened, but there was enough furniture in here - he could break it and escape that way, make it on foot and find another entrance, make another attempt at confronting Beryl, transformation or no. He took a step and nearly fell, reaching out at the last moment to catch his balance on legs that were suddenly far weaker than they should be. Something was definitely wrong, but he couldn't stop now. He staggered over to a tall standing lamp, grabbed it in both hands, and tugged harder than he should have had to to get it to move. He strode towards the window with the long end trailing on the ground - he realized bitterly he may not be able to break the window as he was, even if he used the best method; but even so he continued: if he wasn't strong enough now, he could rest for a bit and try again. With a sense of where he was he could even make a better plan -

But as he raised the lamp in both hands, the sharper end directed towards the glass, his faint reflection mirroring his every move, he stopped dead in his tracks. He couldn't see the ground. He'd need some way to get down - but how far? Would sheets handle it, or would he _need_ his transformation to survive the fall? Lowering his makeshift polearm, he moved closer to the window, looking for where the starry horizon ended. ...but it never did. The closer he walked the farther it went until his cheek was practically pressed to the glass and his breath caught in his chest, vertigo making him feel weightless.

There was no ground.

There was no sky - no clouds, no moon, no _atmosphere._

He was in space.

He stepped back on exhausted legs and dropped the lamp. _If he had…_ but he hadn't. He hadn't been sucked out into space, he was still here, still alive, and still able to help. Maybe. At least this explained why his psychometry wasn't working: he needed a connection to Earth. He kept stepping backwards, the reflection imposed upon the thousands of stars growing smaller and smaller until his legs bumped into the edge of the bed and he sat back onto it, eyes open wide and staring out at the dark. Could he not transform in space? Was that the problem? And, if that were true, was there anything he could do? He couldn't even escape the room. Was he just one more thing his friends needed to worry about? The attacks on the city, the enemies running those attacks being _human,_ their future selves in stasis, the Queen's fatigue, Metallia's next assault, Beryl's involvement, King Endymion's disappearance, and now _him._ He'd be a burden, one thing too many - but _no._

He blinked, tearing his eyes away from the darkness between the stars. There was something he could still do. He could get through to Beryl - if Metallia had chosen her it was their best chance. He could take care of things on this end - transformation or no, he could still talk Beryl out of it, talk her back to their side. He'd figure this part out, let his friends handle the chaos on Earth as he attempted to diffuse the situation entirely here. He pressed against the soft mattress to stand, only to fall back down. The transformation attempts must have taken a lot out of him, even if nothing had come of it. He couldn't leave the room, Beryl was not coming back for now; she'd said Metallia was resting, that she was exhausted after breaking through the space-time dimension, so he had some time. He'd rest up.

Laying out on the bed, he rolled onto one side, away from the window, and stamped back the unpleasant emotions that he wouldn't let surface. Closing his eyes, he thought it would be hard to fall asleep - he figured he'd just lay still and rest and let his body recover - but sleep took him almost immediately.

He was awakened by a hand on his chest and lips pressed against his forehead. Eyes shooting open, he tensed as long auburn hair cleared from his field of vision enough to reveal Beryl. She sat on the bed beside him and neatly tucked her hair behind her ear - hair that was much lighter than her original black hair - while keeping her other hand pressed to his chest. He glanced down at it and she shyly removed it. He sat up - or tried to, but his head dizzied with the effort and he settled for propping himself up on his elbows. It shouldn't have been that hard to move.

She frowned at him with worry. "I thought you might be like this," she said quietly. She reached beside him and he jerked his head to follow the move - she slowed, her hands hesitating for a moment on a small washcloth in a bowl sitting on the table beside the bed. She looked hurt by the accusatory nature of his action, but he said nothing. As he straightened his neck he glanced to the door and found it closed. Maybe not locked - Beryl was in here - but then, unable to transform, he didn't need to escape. He needed to stay with her, get her back on their side. Water dripped from the cloth as she wrung it out and he met her gaze, tried to hide his aversion to her changed orange eyes, or the new red tint in her hair. She held the cloth out, mutely explaining her intent to wipe his forehead, and he leaned more heavily on his left elbow to hold out his right hand for the cloth, instead; even in other times, they had never been _that_ close. There was a wistfulness in her expression he didn't want to recognize when she handed the cloth over.

He wiped his face. "What's going on?"

She took the cloth back from him as she began to explain. "You're connected," she said, the words hanging in the air as she deposited it in the basin beside the bed. He didn't know what she meant - "you and Metallia. You tried to transform, didn't you?" she asked, but continued without need of confirmation, "The energy you expended went straight to her. You replenished her, whether you meant to or not, because of that connection -"

He took her hand, stopping her immediately. He had to - she couldn't take that narrative so easily. He didn't feel comfortable initiating such contact with her - not with their past, not with the connections she may make, _would_ make, considering her behavior up until that point, and especially not knowing Usako was out there probably worried about him - but he had to keep her there long enough to make her listen to him and he knew physical contact would make her hesitate to leave. He wished he could make it clear it was platonic. "But it's _not_ because of a connection, Beryl," he said, and her mouth opened to refute him but closed again with a soft squeeze to her cold hand. "She's been strengthening from the collected energy from the people of Crystal Tokyo for a long time now, just like the Senshi had been collecting energy for Diana and Queen Serenity. If she got stronger when I tried to transform, it was through _taking_ my energy, same as anyone else's. If we were connected, I would feel it, wouldn't I?" He asked to engage her, to make her think, to start questioning whatever Metallia had been feeding her -

"You can't feel your shadow," she replied instead, her other hand moving to clasp the back of his hand, enveloping him as she looked at him imploringly. She leaned in closer. "That's what she _is,_ Endymion - a shadow of her former self, an embodiment of the Sun, responsible for _life on Earth. _Responsible for _your life,_ your _power._ She's part of the reason the Golden Crystal is so strong - part of it was _her _soul gem, sent to Earth to protect the life that flourished there. It fused with Earth's own crystal and became what it is today - it became _you, _Endymion." She held his hand tighter when his arm went limp, his heart immediately rejecting what she said even as his mind puzzled it through. Holding it closer to her chest she pressed on, "She's only trying to set things right again. She's not going to take it back, I promise - _she_ promised. She just wants to set us free from the people who imprisoned her - the reason why she had to send her soul gem to empower Earth's to begin with. Once that's through she'll leave us alone, content to watch over us from her place of power on the Sun - you'll be able to do whatever you intend to do with Earth, whether that be to rule it as its King or live peacefully as just another person. Our friends, too - she won't hurt anyone -"

"But she _has_ hurt people," he said, blinking away from her pleading eyes, his voice thready. He turned his head and coughed to strengthen it. "She's hurt a _lot_ of people, Beryl, she and the beings who serve her. A city is in ruins, its population greatly reduced - our friends in this time are _comatose_, Beryl, and it's all her doing -"

Her grip on his hand tightened to almost painful. "They'll get _better,"_ she stated harshly. "They wouldn't hear her out and she didn't want to hurt them so she made sure they couldn't stand in her way, that's all. When this is over she'll make everything just like it was -"

"I've seen what she did," he interrupted, pulling his hand from her grasp in an attempt to shock her into listening, "It's all on tape. There was no 'hearing her out' - she made a demand and immediately attacked; buildings were destroyed and _innocent people died._ Whatever Metallia's been telling you, she's either leaving out a great deal or changing things in her favor. Whatever her origins, she's _attacking Earth,_ not saving it!"

Her eyes narrowed and she pushed up off the bed; he used his arm to sit up a little taller. He had gone too far, but he couldn't take it back - she had to know, had to have that in the back of her head, whether she wanted to consider it now or later, so long as it was before it was too late. He just had to know what to say to keep her from leaving, but already she was around the end of the bed and making for the door - "She's not attacking _Earth!"_ she spat, making a motion with her hand that the door mimicked, swinging open to admit her. She glared at him over her shoulder, "She's freeing it from the influence of the _Moon."_

The door slammed shut behind her, undoubtedly locked to him. Influence of the Moon? … he succumbed to his exhaustion, falling back on the mattress and stretching out his tired arms beside him as his mind muddled through what was said. Metallia being from the sun had a ring of truth to it - Helios had said the energy they analyzed from her latest attack was not unlike a solar storm - but the rest of it…? The Golden Crystal being made in part by the Sun? That Metallia sent the Sun's soul gem to meld with Earth's when Metallia was being imprisoned - there's no one that can corroborate her story. His connection is firmly with the Earth, not the Sun. … not that he'd ever tried that alternative… and not that that "donation" would concretely result in anything like that, anyway. They didn't know enough about how soul gems worked to either confirm or deny that claim.

And if what she said were true?

… if it were true, if Metallia was trying to continue to protect life on Earth, she wouldn't attack its people. Even if it were to 'free it from the influence of the Moon' - there _were no _influences of the Moon on Earth. The Moon Kingdom, if that's what she meant, was destroyed; she saw to the last of that in decommissioning Luna and Artemis's programming. All that was left was Princess Serenity in Usagi - or, "Neo Queen Serenity" in this time - and her "influence" was anything but dangerous to Earth. If the Moon Kingdom did seal Metallia away, this was _revenge,_ not an altruistic fight for Earth's freedom.

He wanted to get up, to pace, to try to think his way around this, to come up with something that could outsmart this creature and catch it in a lie so obvious that Beryl could not dismiss it, but even as he tried to sit up his limbs felt heavier and heavier, his thoughts more and more clouded. Whether or not Metallia was the past owner of one of the Golden Crystal's predecessors, she was taking energy from him like she owned it, and if he tried to expend any energy to stop her she'd just take that, too, like she did with his attempt at transforming.

He was trapped and defenseless and there was no way out. He was letting everyone down, and his failure would cost him everything, and yet here he was, barely able to fight off sleep, let alone save the world.

There had to be a way. He had to stay awake, to think…

"I'm sorry," she said warily, waking him as she gently placed a washcloth over his forehead. "I knew that would upset you, but it's so frustrating to see you like this and know what I know and not be able to _do_ anything about how it makes you feel."

His eyelids were so heavy… He couldn't get up. He could barely twitch his hand, let alone anything else. He couldn't protest, even if he wanted to. All he could do is look up at her and try to bolster whatever strength he had left to speak, to try to convince her she was wrong, if he could muster the strength to do that, or stay awake long enough to try. Her hair was a deeper shade of red.

"They've been manipulating you the entire time," she said remorsefully, taking his hand in hers as she sat back. She gently brushed his hair away from his face, his reaction to her proximity enough to keep him awake as she continued to speak, "you never stood a chance against them. As the Moon pulls the Earth, their Princess pulls you: they created a bond between you and she that sealed your fate before you even met her - you never had the chance to fall for anyone else." Her fingers lingered on his cheek, her eyes fell to his lips before again meeting his gaze, their orange depths almost seeming to glow in the half-light of the room. He clenched his jaw. "You may hate the idea now, but soon you'll see. Here, you're separated from her influence. You'll forget about her and it will all become so much clearer to you. When she's gone and all this is over you'll be able to pick up the pieces - I _know_ you will." She released his hand to tuck her hair behind her ear, her words soft and intimate, "And I'll be by your side…" she leaned down and he turned his head aside, but her hands moved to either cheek and held him still as she kissed his lips, his body paralyzed beneath her touch.

When she straightened he glared up at her, repulsion rising in his chest, betrayed, used, angry - and afraid for what she said. "_Don't touch her,"_ he warned, throwing all the energy he could into sitting up. His voice was raspy and his predicament was anything but threatening, but that didn't stop him, "If you hurt so much as a hair -" he had to stop to breathe, "on her head, Beryl -"

But she didn't wait for him to finish, only looked down on him with pity as she gently picked up the washcloth that had fallen from his forehead and deposited it in a basin and said "I'll be back to visit you again soon, okay?" She stood so her silhouette blocked out some of the stars in the window behind her. She left, the sound of the door opening and closing announcing her exit.

He fought burning muscles to bring his hand up to his face to scrub her kiss from his lips. She was wrong. It wasn't some trick - he loved Usagi, and it wasn't because the Moon Kingdom bewitched him. He loved her smile and her laugh and her explosive reactions to minor annoyances. He loved her stubbornness, and how much she enjoyed food and manga and attention. He loved how much she cared, and how affectionate she was, how easily she got along with people. He even liked how selfish she was, though he hadn't gotten to see that side of her in so long, now. He wanted to make her happy and keep her safe. He loved her, and admired her, and liked who he was when he was around her. He liked Usagi for _Usagi,_ not because some supernatural force had arranged for that attraction to be there. _And he had just been kissed by someone else._ He scrubbed harder, though the renewed force he put into it barely did anything. He felt lightheaded, his head pounding in time with his heartbeat, and he lay back down to ease it.

Even besides that, though, what Beryl said didn't make sense. If the Moon _had_ bewitched him, if it had somehow forced him to fall in love with Serenity, why would the Queen have gone to war with Earth? Diana's warmongering aside, even if the Queen thought the Earth was a danger to them, she could have just relied on the "connection" she created to forge an alliance through marriage he would have been only too willing to agree to. Metallia was lying and Beryl was believing it because it was what she wanted to hear. And now, no matter what he said, she'd brush him off under the pretense that he was being controlled, while _she_ was the one under something's control.

The pounding of his head made it hard to think, but he couldn't go to sleep again. He had to come up with something - some way to stop this.

Metallia… what if she were telling the truth about her past? Could there be anything to turn her away from revenge, or would they be forced to destroy her to save Neo-Queen Serenity? ...What would happen to the people who followed her - would they return to normal? What about the King? Or the Heavenly Kings and Senshi of the future? … And, more immediately, was there some way he could isolate himself from her energy gathering? He couldn't afford to sleep anymore. If Beryl was beyond him, he had to get back somehow and share what he knew...

Beryl… was she truly beyond him? Was there really nothing he could say or do to convince her to reject Metallia and come back with him? ...already she acted as though anything he said fit with what Metallia told her he'd say. What would happen to her? ...She saved his _life _in Elysion - if it hadn't been for her, the senshi's soul gems wouldn't've been returned to Usagi and their spirits wouldn't've been able to protect them as they had against the Silver Crystal's power. ...Not to mention her loyalty prior to that, in this life and the last. ...No matter the difficulties now, he couldn't just give up on her and be alright with the possibility of having to… to…

...to what?

… he couldn't let himself fall asleep.

_Usako. _He wanted her to know he was alright. He wanted to know that _she_ was alright. He wanted to be there to make _sure_ she was alright.

He was just… so. tired.

"-dymion?!" he came back to something soft pressing quickly against his face, but before he could open his eyes he was already falling - "Endymi-"

Pain, sharp and hot, flared across his cheek and his eyes shot open, unseeing at first but the dark room started coming into focus before his eyelids closed heavily again, his hearing fading alongside his sight - "Metallia! Metallia, you have to stop! You're taking too-"


	6. Allies

Nearly twenty-four hours had passed since his latest greatest failure.

He had been trying to protect him. It wasn't like he had just been standing by, twiddling his thumbs when it happened - he was fighting an enemy that _exploded on contact, _his attention was rightfully placed on what he was in the middle of. That's what he had been there for - he was back up, he was an extra set of eyes and ears, he was reinforcements and defense for when they found her just so either Mamoru or Khalid could confront her and focus on her while he handled any enemy. He was doing what he was supposed to be doing. He couldn't - he _tried_ to break away when Mamoru darted off, but he couldn't manage it without potentially killing his opponent. And the guy had been _human, _not some unintelligent monster; he couldn't just… If he had, he might have gotten there in time. But then so could have Khalid. It wasn't his fault. Not his alone, anyway. And that mattered - maybe not in the long run, maybe not to Khalid or any of the others, but it mattered to _him_ because he couldn't stand the idea of that failure resting on his shoulders alone. Especially now that it was becoming only too clear that it wasn't a failure that was easily remedied.

Mamoru was gone, and even with all this future technology, they weren't finding him.

The cameras weren't picking up anything - it had been a longshot to start, but they hadn't covered all their bases before and they damn well were going to now. This place had all kinds of alarms and systems in place, though some had been damaged in the recent past, and still none of those picked up anything - no energy spikes, earthquakes, weird light, nothing. And despite how hard he listened or opened himself up to hearing Mamoru as he had when they were on the spaceship less than a _day_ ago, there was no call. He _knew _Mamoru was still alive - he was confident in that, as weirdly confident as he had been in their ability to teleport and put up a barrier, and that Khalid put so much faith in that confidence was reassuring. That reassurance had been helpful when the others returned not long after they had; the way it had gone down was that he and Khalid immediately returned to the Crystal Palace while Helios - the human one - had instructed the other teams to complete their missions and return, citing that sharing the information while they were still out fighting would be a potentially deadly distraction. Upon their successful return they were informed of what happened, and - short of Nero attempting to deck him - they were quick to turn to positive action rather than blaming anyone for what went down. … Kaito had to see the video, but afterward he was fine.

Khalid had grabbed Nero's arm mid-punch and turned it; the two of them were still out in the city - he could see them on one of the videos now: Khalid had his crystal out and Nero was watching his back as they moved through the city and a little beyond, apparently trying to use it to see whatever the blue jewel showed. Kaito was somewhere above him, using the height of the upper levels of the palace as a meditative place in an attempt to "hear" farther. Usagi-chan was with her senshi, having been pulled into helping set up the new refugees, probably as a means of distracting her. Seeing her cry had not been great.

...and neither was this feeling of helplessness. Metallia had come from _beyond_ Crystal Tokyo, but they were only able to focus active parts of their search and surveillance on the city. Just what was happening in the _rest_ of the world in this time? Why hadn't help been sent? Was _every_ city under attack like this? Did Crystal Tokyo have no allies?! Most frustratingly, he knew he could find all that out if he could just figure out how to work the computer system - there had to still be internet - but he had next to no experience with computers and he was hesitant to experiment with the system in case he accidentally canceled a program they had running. Helios - the human - could have helped, but ever since Mamoru went missing he had been in and out so quickly that Yuu had barely a moment to register the ghostly figure was in the room before he was gone again to who-knew-where. He had held off on calling Kaito down to see what he could manage with the system, but without any updates in over two hours from _anyone,_ he had hit his limit. He couldn't just sit there and do nothing, even if he had no leads on anything else to do. Mamoru was alone out there, Beryl had turned against them (otherwise they'd've heard something, wouldn't they?), and there was no telling when Metallia would strike again, using Beryl as her host. If they were still trying to save this future and not just survive it, things had to change. Hell, even if they were just trying to _survive _it, something had to change.

Maybe that was the most aggravating thing. Pluto had made it apparent and then Helios had practically seconded it: _this wasn't their future._ Not anymore, anyway. Little Prince Mamoru returning to their time had set off a domino effect that separated them from this entire setup, so this wasn't really their fight. Mamoru had brought them in for Rin, and they had followed Mamoru - not that Yuu wouldn't've tried to help the kid out anyway, but now that Mamoru was put in direct danger for helping, he found it hard not to be sour about the entire endeavor. Helping people is the right thing to do - it is _always_ the right thing to do - but at what cost? As it stood, they were stuck in a future that wasn't theirs, fighting a war that had nothing to do with them, trying to find someone who left without a trace and simply waiting for a giant monster to appear and rain starfire down upon them and kill them all entirely outside their own world. It wasn't right, and it wasn't fair, and while before he had felt like it was possible to give this place a chance by removing Metallia's host from the picture, now he wasn't so sure. If Mamoru were here with them still, he might have debated cutting and running at this point - they still had Pluto's key, didn't they?

… _Mamoru_ had Pluto's key.

Yuu uncrossed his legs and stood, his muscles protesting the sudden movement after so long inert, and blinked, his eyes adjusting to shifting perspective, no longer dully watching the giant wall of screens for any warning signs or sudden changes. He made for the door and paused; someone should still be here in case there was a change. With a slight frown, rather than finding Kaito himself, he twitched the watch dials to noon and waited for the response, quick to announce himself before eager voices made too-hopeful assumptions about who made the call.

"Kaito, could you come down here?" he asked as the others signed off, and with a straight-faced nod, Kaito was on his way.

He approached the bank of computer controls and looked over them for what felt like the three-thousandth time, some of the symbols making as much sense now as they had the first time - further bothering him because if they were using borrowed characters they _should_ have allies -

"Have you found something?"

He turned, expecting Kaito but finding human-Helios instead; it had been too quick for Kaito to make it down anyway. "No," he replied honestly to the ghostly being, but asked before it could leave again - "But could you tell me something?"

The priest paused, then nodded, the horn on his head dipping before he approached the controls, "standing" beside him, awaiting the question. This Helios was older than the Priest of Elysion in the Golden Age; not by much, but his face was more angular, his amber-colored eyes wider and wiser, but guarded. "What is it?" he asked, looking down to the controls as though to prompt him away from his study.

Yuu kept his eyes on the specter, "Why don't we have allies coming to our aid?"

The door opened behind them, admitting the King of the North. Yuu did not look away to see him enter.

Helios glanced behind his shoulder at the new arrival as he approached, then shifted his gaze back to Yuu for a moment, contemplatively, and back to the bank of screens ahead of them. "It's not wise to know too much about your future."

"This isn't our future anymore," Yuu countered. Kaito stopped near them; Yuu could practically feel him putting pieces together before turning to add his attention to Yuu's, crossing his arms stubbornly.

"Not _directly,"_ Helios admitted, leaning ghostly hands on the controls, "But changing the date of attack for the Archons and deepening the breadth of your own powers may not change other events that came to pass in our time. There are _good things_ here, and I would not chance them to ease your curiosity -"

"One change is guaranteed now," Kaito stated coldly, "When we figure out where Metallia came from, we're ending her the moment she begins in our time. No matter what else shifted when Rin interfered with the timeline, this will not be allowed to happen again."

"How large is the extent of this attack?" Yuu pressed on that note, "Are our allies bogged down in their own fights against Metallia's forces, or do we simply not have allies?"

Kaito's mouth opened as though to object to the idea immediately, but he closed it, clenching his hands on his bicep.

Helios glared. "We are not without allies," his words cut through the air. "You don't need to know anything el-"

"We _do,_" Yuu interrupted, his volume rising, "as it is apparent our allies care little for our wellbeing!" he said, jabbing a finger towards the empty, burned, melted city shown on their displays. "Knowing about them now could prepare us not to make the same mistakes in friends should our timeline somehow end up back here! Who are our supposed allies?! Did the UN turn its back-?!"

"No!" Helios shouted, breaking him off, "Stop it!" He growled, turning to punch buttons that his fingers slid neatly through, his scowl deepening as it did, but Kaito shifted forward to supply his digits towards the Priest's efforts, allowing Yuu to remain standing in strong opposition. "This is exactly -" Helios growled, continuing to jam buttons quickly, forcing Kaito to remember and catch up as quickly as he could as the Priest seethed, "-why I refused to talk about it. Get ideas of future betrayals out of your stubborn head, Jadeite, or you'll cause the fall of this Kingdom before it even stands." The screens changed suddenly - all of them, all at once - and Helios jabbed his ghostly finger at them in a mirroring fashion to what Yuu had done before. "They _can't_ come to our aide because King Endymion has already gone to theirs!"

Kaito sucked in a breath and Yuu finally cut his gaze from Helios to see what the new images revealed and saw entire cities covered in translucent, golden-colored crystal. Ships were capped with golden jewels and grounded in soft sand all over the world, small towns and country homesteads were covered in golden domes; even in a small wide shot of mountains he could see glittering masses of crystals through the trees.

Helios continued with fire in his voice, "After Metallia's first attack we put out alerts and prepared to send out to help only to find that as Crystal Tokyo was being systematically attacked, so were other major cities all over the globe. It was already there, collecting energy, its hold solidified. With the attack here so ruthless and all-encompassing, we could not spare our Kings to root out the colonies of corrupted citizens everywhere, but we sent what we could and shared the information we gathered, which helped them fight back. Then Zoisite fell, then Nephrite, then Endymion, and even as Metallia's attacks redoubled after its second defeat, other countries still started to send us what reinforcements they could. And then, just before Metallia returned the third time, communication between us and the rest of the world ceased, and _that_ is why." He gestured again towards the screen, the fire worked out of him. He took a few steps back, looking through the screens all over again. "_He_ did this," he said, a hint of marvel in his voice, "From wherever he is, he still managed to pull this off.

"The Earth is sleeping," he explained, "its citizens - great and small - protected from Metallia's wrath. Before her solar storm arrived here, before she attacked Neo-Queen Serenity and burned us to the ground, she swept over the globe to destroy its cities but it was in _vain_ \- her fire will not penetrate the stone."

"He left Crystal Tokyo unprotected…" Kaito trailed off, but Yuu knew why and finished his statement before he could.

"Because he believes the people here can save the world. If he protected it, Serenity would be asleep, same as everyone else, and Metallia would have won. He believes in her -" he turned to Helios, "Does she know he did this?"

"I…" Helios was quiet, "I'm not sure she heard it. The last of her senshi had only just passed, Metallia was coming for Crystal Tokyo; I think she only heard that she had to prepare to fight, and when it was all over she could barely stand, and then Rin went missing… and in her condition…"

"She needs to know," Yuu insisted, "He's put his trust and faith in her - knowing that could make the difference!"

Helios slowly nodded. "I'll tell her when next she wakes." His brows furrowed and he closed his eyes in concentration for a few moments, the behavior odd enough to keep both Yuu and Kaito quiet. "I must go," he said quietly before opening his eyes. "Elysion needs me -"

"Is Endymion-?!" Kaito was quick to ask before Helios could disappear; Yuu felt the answer to his unasked question was false.

Helios shook his head, seconding Yuu's gut feeling, "No. There are just too many nightmares - the Maenads are having problems keeping them in check and need my assistance."

"Nightmares?" Kaito inquired, the question quick.

Helios nodded. "Ever since he put the world to sleep, Elysion has been overrun with dreams under our protection; we're managing as best we can, sending dreamers to deep sleep in shifts to try to accommodate as many as we can, but with things the way they were when they were put under, nightmares are common, even despite the natural healing qualities inherent in Elysion's dream-states."

Kaito wondered aloud, "Elysion protects dreams now?" the question mirroring Yuu's. Elysion was the old capital, the idyllic seat of the kingdom they had built together, the unintended battleground they had died on; he had half expected a new Earth Kingdom to be built there, rather than in Tokyo, but to hear that it was still a separate dimension and was home to _dreams_ of all things…

"Elysion is a real place, still hidden in that pocket dimension we created all those years ago, but in using the crystal there the way he had on that day, millennia ago, it is now tied directly to him. It is a reflection of him, an extension of him," Helios said, only… _somewhat_ making sense. The priest tipped his shoulders, as though recognizing he wasn't being entirely clear. "Elysion follows Endymion's heart, and Endymion's heart is intent on protecting those people that he put to sleep; therefore, it is now a place of dreams. He wanted to keep them safe, so I will endeavor to keep them safe; not to mention I am not sure what would happen if a nightmare grew too strong there…" His trailed off, his brows furrowing again, and half-bowed before he disappeared right before their eyes.

It was just him and Kaito then. His eyes drifted to the screens, and Kaito stepped back to stand with him, shoulder to shoulder, and gaze up at it, too.

"He put the entire world to sleep," he mused after moments of silence between them.

Kaito nodded, "And he did it from whatever incapacitated state he's in." He paused. "I think he's being protected by one of those crystals, too."

"Yeah?"

"I think that's what I saw in the video before it glitched out - it looked like that same shade of crystal, reflecting out from the smoke. That's probably how he knew Metallia couldn't break through it - because she hasn't managed to break through what cropped up around him."

"Still… to do that to the entire world…"

"He's stronger," Kaito shrugged off, looking over at him for a moment before he started typing at the controls to return the screens to live videos of the city. "He's had who-knows-how-long to develop his powers, and that was apparently _without_ the Lord of the Center's help. Who knows what he'll be able to do when we get to this age." With a smooth but distinct _click!,_ the screens were back to exactly what they had been before, and his green-eyed friend turned to face him, leaning back against the control panel. "So you just needed me here as reinforcements for confronting Helios-the-older?"

Yuu smirked, "Nah. I wanted you here to use the machine to figure out how to find out what he just told us about Crystal Tokyo's allies."

Kaito raised a hand s though accepting a round of silent applause, tilting his head and shrugging one shoulder, "I'm here to serve."

He probably would have said something to the opposite effect in different circumstances.

"That, and take over here while I go find little Rin."

He crossed his arms and raised a brow. "Why?"

"To get back to the Gates of Time."

A line formed between Kaito's brows, his eyes turning suspicious for a moment, mouth opening once but then closing. He swallowed, and Yuu couldn't help but smirk in amusement watching Kaito figure it out. He wasn't disappointed, as Kaito's eyes widened and he practically threw himself off of the control bank as he exclaimed, "The key!"

Yuu nodded, "He should still have it; it's got a connection to that place, so maybe we could follow that connection back and go get him."

Kaito was walking towards the door and Yuu joined him, "Or see if she could ping him through it?"

Ping?

"Regardless, maybe the Guardian could give us insight on where to find him should the key be somehow inoperable," He reached up to tap on the little receiver tucked into their ears to activate the radio and asked clearly, "Could we get someone up here to take over command center observation?"

The line was silent, but after a moment a soft voice replied, "Mercury, on my way up."

They paused by the door to wait for her, Kaito making it clear he wasn't going to stand back while Yuu figured things out. "So, your pagoda thing worked," Yuu stated, an invitation to talk while Mercury made it up from the depths of the palace.

Kaito nodded. "It took a moment to get through an incantation, so Jupiter and Mars had to cover for me. But it worked. I'm not sure where the evil influence goes once it's pulled from them - beyond 'into the pagoda' - or if there's some ritual cleansing that needs to take place; Mars had some suggestions. She's a priestess at one of the temples in the city - did you know?"

"No," Yuu replied, uneasy but trying not to look that way. "I didn't get a chance to meet them while they were civilians."

"Ah." Kaito replied knowingly.

Yuu said nothing.

"It's… odd, isn't it?" Kaito said, looking at the screens behind them rather than at him. "To suddenly have them as allies."

He nodded.

"It's like… I know they're on our side now, and I understand there were other things at play before, that they were pressured and corrupted and everything, but, regardless…" he was reaching for a reaction, or for how he felt about the matter, so he obliged.

"They were our enemies," Yuu said for him, stating next without any room for contradictions, "I killed Mars. Did you know why she singled me out?" he continued without waiting, "It's because I didn't immediately pass out like the rest of them. The others on the bus, I mean. It must've had something to do with being Jadeite before. But there I was, alone as the people around me - classmates, people I had seen on the bus for years - were suddenly unconscious, this white mist leaking out of them, and there she was, standing outside in that strange, dark place, fire snaking around her as she coldly collected their energy. She felt me looking at her and there was just this… _fear_ inside me." He shook his head, shaking away the image that had haunted his dreams for weeks afterward. "And later I killed her. I hadn't even meant to," he shrugged, "I didn't know what would happen, I didn't - …" he broke off, shrugging again, "But she knows. I know she does. It's… difficult." to work with her. To be near her. To see her and think of anything but that cold anger in her eyes as she forced him off that bus and… or the expression on her face when _his_ fire overtook her.

When they had broken off at the Gates of Time and ended up fighting one of the flying enemies that had been chasing Rin, they hadn't said so much as a word to each other - they just fought the enemy, careful not to cross paths, blasting it with fire from two angles, driving it back. He hadn't used his knives. She hadn't used the fire that looked like snakes. It was an unspoken understanding. And then Khalid and Mercury had arrived and the enemy was dead and there was no hiding behind action; instead he took cover behind West's explanation of what was going on, carefully avoiding both getting and giving Mars attention.

"I try not to think about it," Kaito said, not entirely helpfully. Yuu rolled his eyes at his slightly-taller friend, hoping to convey all the _well, duh,_ at his disposal. Kaito huffed through his nose and pulled the elastic out of his hair to retie it back out of his face - unnecessary, as it had been fine before. Probably nervous. "Mercury dangled me like bait - complete with ramming sharp hook into me. _Mercury._ When I saw her for the first time in Crown I expected someone ruthless and cold and completely wrong for Usagi-chan to hang out with, but she's quiet and looked completely flabbergasted as to why Usagi-chan had taken an interest in her. And since she's transformed she hasn't looked me in the eye _once."_

He finished with his ponytail, "I guess what I'm trying to say is that, _yeah, it's difficult_ for us, but it's probably worse for them, and the faster we try to move past all that the better it'll be - if not for us, then for Usagi-chan." He put a hand on his hip, looking to Yuu, "I can't say I'm not glad we were put in separate groups for that first mission, though; Jupiter, Mars and I have less against each other for past transgressions."

Had Khalid done that on purpose? He hummed a response.

The door behind them opened automatically as Mercury approached it, and they turned to welcome her in; just as Kaito had said, though, she avoided making eye contact, instead just nodding at them. "I'll radio if there are any changes."

"Thank you, Mercury," he said, making an effort.

She just nodded again, moving deeper into the room, her eyes on the monitors. They left, Kaito leading them to the elevators to the upper floors and Rin.

They couldn't find him _anywhere._ They had combed the living quarters, calling softly for him, not wanting to awaken the Queen, but having actively searched for the better part of the hour, they had to conclude he was with her. They stood before tall doors that _had_ to be the King and Queen's quarters and tapped their microphones for help. Maybe they were cowardly to do so, but in Yuu's house, if his parents' door was closed, you did _not go in there _unless you were _literally dying,_ and Kaito looked less than thrilled to go in first. And, besides, if she were exhausted they didn't want to make her feel like she had to get up. They just needed Rin to tell them how to get back to Pluto, so they called Helios, figuring he could take a break from tailing enemies to pop in there and have a look, but rather than _their_ Helios showing up, the ghostly form of Priest Helios appeared instead.

"Why are you here?" he asked, looking towards the door.

"We need Rin," Yuu stated plainly. "He can get us back to the doors of time -"

"Not to leave," Kaito hasilty qualified, "But to see if she could help us find Mamoru."

The Priest's brows furrowed, not following.

"He's got one of her keys," Yuu said, nodding towards the door. "It may not work but we won't know until the Prince takes us there. Right now it's a better plan than staring expectantly at screens we know he won't be showing up on anytime soon."

Rather than answer, Helios just stepped through the doors to the room. They waited, and a couple of minutes later, the Priest returned. "He's not in there; have you checked -" but his words caught in his mouth, his eyes opening wide in surprise, and he winked out, disappearing again.

"What was that about?" Yuu commented.

"It wasn't exactly promising…" Kaito trailed off as he tapped his ear for the radio. "Mercury, how is it looking down there?"

"No changes," Mercury replied after a moment.

"Thank you," he dutifully responded, "Please keep us apprised of the situation should anything change; Priest Helios disappeared abruptly without explanation so we need to stay on our toes. Usagi-chan?" he called, moving towards the elevators. Yuu followed.

"Yes?" she replied, the background noise of a lot of voices leaking into the transmission.

"Is Rin with you?" Kaito asked, the elevator doors opening.

"I haven't seen him - isn't he with his mother?" she sounded worried.

"Not directly but -"

Yuu put one hand on Kaito's shoulder to stop him and held the other out to pause the door before leaning out, chasing a faint sound he had thought he heard -

"I'll look for him down here!" Usagi-chan declared, dropping the conversation.

Kaito followed him out into the hallway, so they were _both_ staring at the little blue kitten with pale blue eyes and a golden crossed-circle insignia on its forehead as it raced towards them, bell ringing wildly with every running leap. It stopped a few feet from them, paws skidding, and bowed its head as it caught its breath. "A pet?" Kaito asked Yuu.

"Please, wait, young Masters!" the kitten said, its voice young and masculine, "I apologize for not greeting you sooner, but please let me go with you to find Little Lord! I was supposed to be watching him but I fell asleep with Her Majesty and that door is so hard to open -"

"_It talks,"_ Yuu whispered hurriedly back to Kaito as the kitten went on about how large the door is and how ill-placed the handle was in comparison to nearby furniture.

Kaito hissed at him to be quiet, "_Think Luna,"_ he suggested before cutting into the kitten's tirade against minimalist room arrangements, "Do you know where he could be, ...uh…" he trailed off as they had yet to be introduced.

Right. Luna. The computer-cat of the Moon. And that other one - the white one; he remembered seeing that one in the flesh when it had warned Endymion about the surprise attack. They had been able to talk, so this wasn't _entirely _outside of the realm of normal. For them.

The little blue kitten practically jumped up in alarm before landing, sitting, and bowing its little head again, tail wrapped around its feet in feline embarrassment. "I'm sorry! I did it again - I am Gaea of Mau, now of Crystal Tokyo, guardian to Earth's Crowned Prince Mamoru Lord Endymion -" it's head went from bowing to hanging, "though it's apparent that I'm not doing that great a job at it."

Yuu knelt down, reaching out his hand with his index finger in a hook towards the kitten, "Don't worry too much about it, Gaea," he said, the youthful voice and obvious inexperience evidence enough that the cat-person was young and should be commended for trying. Gaea peeked up at him, reached forward and tentatively put his paw on Yuu's finger. He had expected a sniff, like kittens usually did, but he could do a handshake. Pawshake? Whatever this was. He gently moved his hand up and down once and the kitten removed his paw and brightened back up again. "So, do you think you know where he could be?"

"Maybe!" Gaea proclaimed, tapping back toward the elevator. Yuu and Kaito followed, Kaito pressing the button to open the door as the three of them stepped in. "Sometimes he likes to visit with Sailor Pluto, so we should check there!"

That worked.


	7. Elysion and the Garden of Dreams

**Chapter 7: Elysion and the Garden of Dreams**

He ran, throwing everything he had at the enormous creature that strode purposefully through the city of thorns, but to no avail. It barely responded, even as he fired a concentrated beam of golden light from his rose sword. It just got faster, moved farther from him, and no matter how hard he ran he was getting farther and farther behind. He jumped, he _flew,_ but he was batted away effortlessly with one swing of its gigantic tail and landed hard in a thicket of briars. Trapped, he slashed with his sword, kicked his way towards the path of destruction in its wake, ripped and pulled against how his clothing stuck to the thorns and held him back. He couldn't let it reach the castle. Everything pushed him back, the briars grew thicker before him - with every step forward he moved three steps back, and still, the footsteps of the monster boomed and shook the land around it. It yelled a challenge, deep voice bellowing, and people - humans - screamed. He had to help them! But the vines grew thicker, blocking out the light -

"_Endymion!"_ someone called, but he knew it was a trick. If he joined hands with her he would gain the power to _aid_ the monster, not destroy it. He pushed on, struggling against the press of thorns and the pull of the voice from the darkness behind him.

"_Endymion!"_ it called again, but the voice was different - deeper, less feminine - and as his sword was ripped from his hand and moved beyond his reach, he did not follow its progress with his eyes. He had to ignore the voice, to focus on the enemy. His hands open wide, palms out, he threw another blast of energy outward, but the plants only grew -

"_Mamoru!"_

He paused - the enemy had not used his name, only his title - but it was his folly, as in pausing a hand reached out from behind him, clasped his shoulder, and pulled. He fell back into the dark, the thorns disappearing alongside the light…

And suddenly he was in a vast field of flowers, the ethereal light soft about him, thousands of whispering voices moving like the wind through the air all around. Where had he just been? He turned, not quite willing to accept the sudden peacefulness of his new surroundings, suspicious of a threat hiding just beyond his sight - but instead of monsters or friends he couldn't lead to truth, he found a twilit sky and an idyllic forest, before which was a structure carved of white stone. It was familiar, though the roses that grew around it, the vines that crept up its pillars and around its arches were new, rather than something out of his memory. Barely within the structure stood a figure that, for all the world, looked like he would prefer to rush towards him but held back, his appearance half-hidden in the fading light.

Calm as opposed to apprehensive, Mamoru stepped towards him. As he walked, fireflies took off all around, taking to the sky as hundreds of stars to light his way, and the figure in the gazebo relaxed his stance, disappointed, but stood taller and waited patiently for his arrival. Firefly light reflected off of the golden horn protruding from his head, and Mamoru recognized him all at once: Helios. As he stepped up the stone stairs to the platform beneath the crossing white archways the fireflies dispersed, their light filling the fields with a soft glow and reflecting off the peacefully still lake between this structure and the castle far beyond.

"Mamoru," Helios greeted with a slight bow to his head. In just his name alone, Mamoru knew this was not _his_ Helios, but rather the guardian of Crystal Tokyo's time. Which meant this _was_ Elysion, just as the familiarity suggested.

"Elysion is beautiful," he replied, moving to rest one hand on the stone railing as he looked over the lake, only to find his hand wasn't entirely there; he could see through it as easily as they had seen through the High Priest's form back in the castle. His heart sank, and he tried to push past the disappointment and despair the realization brought.

Helios joined him, his form solid, his footsteps resounding against the wooden floor beneath them. "Thank you," he replied, amber-colored eyes forward, "It took some time to restore it to its original state, and more to transform it into the paradise you see before you, but it was a labor of love."

"I can feel it," Mamoru replied, taking a deep breath of the cool air in an attempt to calm the bitter emotions building in his chest, but no amount of deep breathing, even in this atmosphere of peace and tranquility, would ever overcome the knowledge that he had failed them.

Helios turned to him as though sensing it. "Are you alright?" he asked, placing his solid hand on Mamoru's ghostly shoulder and somehow Mamoru felt it.

He turned away from the sight of the lake and the castle beyond, "As well as could be expected, given the circumstances," he replied, unable to keep the note of sourness from his tone. He was dead, Elysion now his own personal Elysium, made so through the connection he had to it. Would the others meet him here, eventually? _Sooner, perhaps, rather than later, thanks to him?_ … should they try to visit him before that time, would he be able to interact with them, or would he be a ghost? Obviously Helios could speak with him - the ability of his sort of priest? Through him, he could at least apologize for not being more careful, for not being able to carry through with their plan. For letting them down. For leaving them. _For leaving her. _"Do they know?" he asked, his heart a stone in his chest.

"Not yet -" Helios began to say, but Mamoru interrupted.

"It'd be better to let them know now, rather than wait," he said, his hand curling into a fist on the railing. "Maybe in your time they've grown past this, but Kaito thinks better knowing all the pieces and Khalid would need to change whatever plan he had in the works to include that I wasn't coming back. Try to give Nero something to punch and Yuu somewhere to go. They'll get past it, but it'd be better hearing from you than hearing from Metallia or Beryl or one of their lackeys."

"So Beryl has turned?" Helios asked.

Right. Information. He nodded his head curtly. "Metallia took advantage of her feelings towards me and the Moon Kingdom and Serenity and worked up a story around them. She hasn't completely transformed, like the three others in the videos, but she's beginning to."

"Has she spoken of Metallia's origin?" Helios asked.

"The version she made for Beryl, in any case," Mamoru replied, reporting, "She said she was the original guardian of the Sun, and that when the Moon Kingdom was settled they sealed her away to usurp her power. She said that she sent her soul gem to Earth before it could be sealed away so it could be joined with Earth's gem to create the Golden Crystal, to protect Earth in her place." Helios sucked in a breath and Mamoru turned to face him, his brows furrowing, his report stopped. The pale guardian's mouth was in a tight line, a crease in his brow; his hands were in fists by his side, and the confidence Mamoru had in the story being false suddenly wavered. "Is it true?" he asked, afraid for the answer to be true and find that not only was the Moon Kingdom foreign to the system entirely but that Serenity's predecessors had entered the system as enemies.

"It is not her story, no," Helios stated carefully, the calm in his tone backed by hot anger. "Not entirely, in any case. But from it, we can glean the bits of truth she hid to make it more believable." Helios turned and leaned his back against the railings of the gazebo, his elbows propped as he considered.

"What parts aren't her story?" Mamoru asked carefully.

"She was never the guardian of the Sun," Helios stated, "Metallia was not responsible for sending its soul crystal to combine with Earth's, and that process was done long before the Moon Kingdom was settled."

He had questions.

"The Golden Crystal isn't of Earth, then?"

Helios shook his head, looking towards him, "It is _entirely_ of Earth, don't confuse yourself - it is simply additionally protected by the Sun."

"But what does that -"

"Nothing," Helios interrupted with authority, but as Mamoru looked to him the guardian's eyes softened. "The Sun's protection is passive, it is not something you can harness, so tuck that information away for what it is - a miscellaneous fact."

Mamoru turned more to face him, the quandary still jumping around in his head. Protected by the Sun? Could he have… … but that was all irrelevant now, wasn't it? "And how did _you_ learn of this 'miscellaneous fact', if it is from so long ago?" Mamoru asked in an effort to refocus himself on things he could potentially help with, rather than chasing a rabbit down holes that would lead him nowhere.

Helios fixed him with a critical stare before cautiously replying, "I was there." To Mamoru's incredulous look, he shrugged, adding, "Kind of." His gaze shifted to the field of flowers Mamoru had come from and stated, "Your miracle on the battlefield that night was not the first time souls have been reincarnated; mine just so happens to come from a little further in the past."

"A little?" Mamoru repeated, in his own opinion taking the revelation quite well.

Helios smiled, "Well, maybe _a lot_ further. A couple millennia, give or take. And _no,"_ he said, sliding his gaze back to Mamoru, "Your Helios has _not_ realized that yet, so try not to mention it to him."

He nodded absentmindedly, putting pieces together - "It was you, then?" he asked, but to Helios's confusion, he elaborated - "You were the guardian of the Sun?"

Helios's eyes dropped, staring at the pale planks of wood at their feet. He shook his head, "No," then added, wistfully, "but we were friends." He paused, "In the end, he did sacrifice himself to combine his Sol crystal with the crystal of Earth, but it was not to protect Earth against the Moon Kingdom, but an enemy far more dangerous and ancient." Helios cleared his throat, "He had no regrets and was not sealed away. That Metallia knew that the crystals combined, though, means it - she - whatever _knows_ about that," he looked up thoughtfully, "else could sense the sun's power in the Golden Crystal and made up parts of a tale that coincidentally was close to the truth."

Helios had _known_ the guardian of the Sun and his reasons for doing what he did to protect Earth... "Did you choose to be reborn?" he asked, drawing the Priest's attention from the purple sky above.

"I did," he said, fixing his gaze on Mamoru. "He loved this planet so much he forfeited his soul towards its protection; the least I could do is stick around and offer what guidance I can to his successors." He half-smiled, but that smile soon faded, "And protect that memory. Metallia probably doesn't know about that old enemy, but the part of the story about the Moon Kingdom is probably true - it may have been sealed away by them, thus the grudge it has against them, and the Queen by extension.

He paused, "So Beryl was manipulated due to how recent the fight against Diana and the Moon Kingdom was, in your time? An ancient grudge against the Golden Crystal would make more sense than the reason Diana had, wouldn't it?" he mused, "And Beryl's loyalty would align her with Metallia, in Metallia's telling. Were you able to confront her?"

"Yes and no," Mamoru replied, crossing his arms. "She wouldn't believe anything that I said; Metallia convinced her that both the Earth and _I_ am under the Moon's influence, and until that influence is erased I'll do and say whatever it takes to protect Usako, or Queen Serenity or Princess Serenity or whomever she's imagining as the person holding the strings."

"Ah," Helios said, nodding his head, a scowl on his lips, "Right. That _would _carry weight with her in that time." He let out a breath and grew quiet, considering.

"But not this time?" Mamoru asked, prompting an answer, anxious to hear what had become of their dynamic in Rin's time. Helios gave him a look, as though reminding him it wasn't good to know too much about the future, even if it was no longer his, but he was dead. There was nothing he could do with that information, no path he could damage. He reasoned, "If she knew of her place in this future, of how she herself fared, maybe she can be convinced that Metallia isn't completely truthful. She would trust her future-self's judgement - Khalid could use that in an attempt to convince her to give up Metallia. If the Beryl from this time is awake, and not comatose somewhere like everyone else is, her appearance could be enough to tip the scales -"

Helios shook his head; while thoughtful, he took the time to briefly explain, "That's not possible."

Mamoru waited for further explanation, but when none was forthcoming he had to assume… "She died?" His stomach lurched. She had had no soul - if she had died… he may be stuck here, but at least he was still himself. He was still experiencing things, he had an 'afterlife', but she…

"No," Helios denied, looking over at him sharply and punctuating the answer with a short shake of his head, repeating, "No, she's not dead. She's just… _elsewhere._"

"Elsewhere?"

"Not on Earth or the Moon. She met someone and is travelling with them - happily, from what her letters have suggested." Travelling? … through _space?_ "She found love and is spending the years exploring with them; there is no way to contact her now, but even if we could, she would never be able to make it back here in time. But that... " he considered, "maybe we could use that." He turned to him, nodding, moving on - "Where are you being held?"

Being held? His body? He shook his head; even if they wanted to recover it he couldn't be much help in locating it. "Somewhere in space," he said, the last word sounding as incredulous out of his mouth as it had in his mind. "It was moving - a meteoroid, maybe? It wasn't large, from the perspective I could see, anyway. No physical horizon outside the room I was being kept in. It was dark, so potentially moving towards the Sun and inner system? If it was passing by planets, none were so close that I could make them out among the stars." He breathed out, "That's where Metallia and Beryl are; she was draining me, had Beryl believing that we were 'sharing' the energy because the golden crystal was originally hers. I don't know how we got there, but, unless they left as soon as I died, she's not on Earth. There's no time to worry about recovering my body, though -"

"Mamoru," Helios interrupted warily, straightening up to put his hand back on his shoulder, leaning in sincerely as he said, "_You're not dead."_ He…? Helios straightened, using his free hand to indicate the world around them. "Elysion is, currently, a land of dreams. You're just dreaming - the first dream you've had since you left. I was able to pull you out to speak with you. You're still alive, and we'll figure out where your body is and bring it back as soon as we can. While you're here, you're safe; King Endymion has spread his protection to every soul sheltered here, including his younger self's, it seems." He released him, looking up and to the left, as though getting ready to go leave, "I'll keep you apprised of what is going on up there, but for now I'll tell them what you were able to tell me and see what we can do with it. Thank you," he said, turning back to him. "This could help -"

"Let me go back," he said, steeling his resolve. If he was alive, he could help. He had more options to try. "I can try again - I can work on convincing her -"

Helios immediately shook his held, taking hold of his wrist as though to keep him in place, "No, Mamoru. If you're here, you're safe; if you go back she just may drain you of everything, and then where would we be? Stay here -"

"No," Mamoru said, shaking his head, pulling his arm free of the Priest's grasp. "I'm not leaving everyone to face this while I just sit out on the sidelines, safe and sound. I can still try to help." He implored, "If I can stop them before Metallia's ready to return to Earth, then she won't be able to attack Crystal Tokyo again." He could tell Beryl where the Golden Crystal really came from, about why Metallia had to go to the past to find her because her future self knew better than to ally herself with a lie. He'd just have to figure out a way around the energy drain. "If I run into trouble again, I'll just… start dreaming again," he said, as though he had any control over that. How many times had he passed out, only to dream that last time? "I can tell you what I've learned, you can use it to prepare, or modify the plans you guys come up with while I'm away." He caught his eye, "We need all the help we can get. Let me keep helping."

Helios returned his gaze steadily… but then took in a breath and let it out, conceding. "Just deciding to dream around her isn't exactly something you can control, but there may be another way." He walked down the short stair, leaving the canopied gazebo, and stooped to pick a single red rose before returning. "Jadeite says you have one of Pluto's keys. If you _must_ return instead of staying safely here, then use it immediately to escape next time your life is threatened. No matter what happens because of it, don't die there."

He nodded. The key. He hadn't felt it on his person, hadn't seen it in his reflection, but he had not given it to anyone - it must still be with him somewhere.

"I still think this is a bad idea," Helios said, "Are you sure?" He nodded again, taking a breath to prepare himself. Helios offered him the flower, and he took it. "Treat that as a talisman," he instructed, "Keep your thoughts trained on it, and you'll find the strength to move. Now _wake up,_" Helios said, pulling hard on the arm that held the flower to throw him off balance. As he fell over the steps of the raised structure, Helios whispered when he passed, "_Good luck."_

He awoke in an entirely different place than he had before. It wasn't Elysion. His body was solid. It wasn't a dream. But he was in a coffin of some sort and that wasn't entirely reassuring. Focusing on the thought of the rose Helios had offered, he pushed out with his hand, but the clear, domed lid rose easily from atop him and he sat up. He was in a chamber made of eerily shaped stone, the walls looking like they were veined, as was the floor around the dias holding the coffin he was in; before him, enormous, glowing deep orange-yellow with darkness pulsing at its center, was some sort of bulb made out of the rock itself, like a seed suspended between floor and ceiling, and the energy it gave off gave him _chills_ -

"Endymion!" a voice called gratefully, but he couldn't take his eyes off the evil mass. Was that _Metallia?_

"_**YOU SEE, MY CHILD? I BROUGHT HIM BACK. FOR YOU. I WOULD NEVER DO YOU HARM,"**_ a voice like an earthquake resounded in the chamber, making it shake - or, rather, making _him_ shake. He breathed carefully, _moved_ carefully, not quite sure of what was going on or if he could use whatever was happening to his advantage in trying to convince Beryl to listen to the truth - She was there, suddenly, her eyes nearly as orange as the glowing orb behind her, her hair a deeper, brighter shade of red, her face shallower, more angular. Her shoulders… there was something wrong with there, a protrusion, sharp and pointed, like a horn or a fang - she cupped his face, bringing him closer to her; he moved with her rather than fight her, not sure yet whether Metallia realized she had not, in fact, brought him back, but Helios had sent him back. If she believed the former, maybe he could -?

"Endymion!" Beryl repeated, and even her voice was a little different - deeper, wider, somehow. "Are you alright?!"

"_**HE WILL BE FINE, THOUGH UNABLE TO ANSWER YOU FOR A TIME,"**_ Metallia answered for him, and something pulled at his hand, dragging it to move - he let it happen. Let Metallia believe what she would; it would give him time, at least. His hand encircled Beryl's wrist, and she smiled, stepping back to give him room. His body moved to get out of the raised case; it was an odd sensation, like he was some sort of puppet, but he worked with it. "_**SOON HE SHALL BE FREE OF THE MOON'S INFLUENCE. TAKE HIM TO HIS ROOM, AND WE WILL MAKE FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR THE FINAL STEP.**_"

Final step? His heart hammered; he didn't have much time.

Beryl pulled him along and he followed, a door suddenly appearing in the chamber wall where none had been before. As it closed behind them, sealing them away from the sight of the formless mass that was Metallia, she spoke. "I thought I lost you, but Metallia was able to reverse the mistake. Rest - once you've rested you'll feel better -"

He thought of Elysion, pictured the red rose, and fought back against the puppeteering force and slowed. She held up, looking back at him quizzically, and he went for it. He shook his head, as though just waking up, and croaked, his voice breaking from strain, "She's lying to you."

Her brows furrowed, "What? No… Endymion, you're not thinking clearly, remember? The Moon -"

"The _Sun,"_ Mamoru interrupted, imploring her to listen, taking her hand to force her to stop and pay attention. The correction had given her pause and he tried to use it - "The Sun's soul stone did combine with Earth's, but it wasn't Metallia that initiated it - Metallia wasn't the Sun's guardian, and the change happened long before Metallia." Beryl's mouth started to open and he implored further, "This isn't about the Moon, Beryl. This is about the Sun and the Earth, and a force that is lying to you to get you to do what it says." Her lips closed, brows furrowing further - "Can you take me somewhere where we can see the sun?" he asked, both to keep them moving and her focused and well as to orient him a little more. Her head tilted, looking up at him to examine him, and he held firm under her scrutinizing gaze. "We don't have much time," he said, and she swallowed, glanced back the way they had come, and pulled him onwards, changing their direction to a new stone-encased path.

"You know she went back in time to get you," he bid as they walked. She no longer held on to him, "But do you know _why?_"

"... to show me what my future was supposed to be," Beryl said quietly, "What it would be, if I helped her free you and the Earth -"

"_Because she knew she couldn't get to the you that is here,"_ he pushed. "You're powerful, Beryl, and Metallia knows that, but the you from this time is happy and content - if what Metallia says is true, would you have overlooked something so devious for so long? If there was something substantial to what she said - if the Moon were really in control of me and held sway over the Earth, would you have been blind to it for so many years? I trust you more than that," he said, catching up to her to look her in the eye as they walked. Her orange irises glanced up at him and then quickly away, red brows still furrowed, though in anger or thought was unclear. "_You_ trust _yourself_ more than that, don't you?"

Ahead of them sunlight beamed through a break in the wall to their left, blinding in the corridor, and he slowed her down, just outside of its intense glow, and took her by the shoulders, avoiding the pointed horn protruding from the curve of either - "She's using you by lying to you and manipulating you into working with her willingly - don't let her. She's seeking revenge against people who sealed her away and destroying life on Earth in the process. That's not something you would ally yourself with, Beryl. I know that about you - the lengths you've gone to to protect Earth stands testament to that. Don't let her change you. Renounce her and come with me."

He let her go, stepping into the blinding light, and held out his hand to block the orb of the sun to see clearly. Ahead of them, a blue star shone brightly, and he inherently knew that it was no star. It was Earth. To far away still to make out as a disc or a crescent, but close enough to pick it out from the background of stars. He felt at peace being able to see it, but that they were so close brought up new potential problems: how fast were they moving? Was this meteor on a crash-course?

"We can stop her," he said, turning back to Beryl. "Will you help me?"

The ground shook beneath his feet and his body started to fall to it, but Beryl remained standing and he realized it wasn't the ground - it was _him._ Metallia was pulling from him again. He thought of the rose, kept it focused in his minds' eye. "We have to go, Beryl," he pressed, reaching out for her, straining against the immense weight that pulled him down. Where was the key?

She stepped forward, hesitantly. "Endymion… No, _Mamoru…_ I almost made a huge mistake," she said, but took his hand. Relief swelled within him, but as the force increased, his free hand patted against his pocket, his chest, searching for the literal key to their escape.

"The key…" he managed to groan as he was forced to his knees, Beryl's concerned expression over him suddenly turning to understanding. She reached into the pocket of her dress and pulled it out - Pluto's little golden key, and he took it and her hand as well, focused on the rose, and raised it high, as he remembered Rin having done.

"Oh Lord of Time and Space, Chronos!" he called, his voice shaking with strain, and then the entire rock did start to shake, throwing Beryl off balance beside him, but he kept his hold on her and pressed on - "Listen to my call! Guide us to the Guardian of the Door - Sailor Pluto!"

The key exploded with light, enveloping them in a glow entirely different than that of the sun, and then…

They were gone.

A/N: Thank you for your reviews and likes and follows, everyone! They give me LIFE! :D

This, unfortunately, was the week I finally caught up to myself XD Things got really busy and I haven't been able to write as much as I'd like to - BUT I WILL PRESS ON! Know that if I miss next Sunday's posting, I will have the chapter the following Sunday! Spring break is coming for both the high school where I work and the university I'm attending, so that week I'm going to try my hardest to push ahead!

BUT I THOUGHT IT COULD BE FUN TO ASK YOU, MY BEAUTIFUL, WONDERFUL READERS:

Do you think Beryl has really renounced Metallia, or will she betray Mamoru in the end?

I ALREADY HAVE THE ENDING IN MIND (and there aren't that many chapters left! :O) BUT I'M ALWAYS CURIOUS! XD

As always, thank you for reading Cardinal King!


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